His administration will be one year on that day having been inaugurated as the nation’s President on May 29, 2015.
Buhari disclosed this in an interview he granted some journalists before he departed London. He had attended an Anti-Corruption Summit organised by the British Prime Minister, David Cameron.
“So far, what has come out, what has been recovered in whatever currency from each ministries, departments and individuals, I intend on the 29th to speak on this. This is because of all Nigerians are getting from the mass media, because of the number of people arrested either by the EFCC or DSS. But we want to make a comprehensive report on the 29th,” the President told his interviewers.
When asked whether he will also publish the names of the looters, Buhari replied, “Yes, eventually, it has to be done because we want to successfully prosecute them. But you know you cannot go to the courts unless you have documents for prosecution.
“People signed for these monies into their personal accounts, their banks gave statements that the money is there, when it came, how much and so on.”
When asked to react to the allegation that his administration’s anti-corruption war is selective, the President said such accusation was against the law enforcement agencies.
He however assured Nigerians that he has not been interfering in the work of the agencies.
He said a critical assessment of those who are being detained for corruption cases would show that they cut across board.
Buhari described the problem of herdsmen’s attacks in some parts of the country as virtually as old as the country itself.
He indicted some unnamed big men who he said converted lands earlier earmaarked as cattle routs and grazing areas to their personal farms.
He said, “This problem is virtually as old as Nigeria itself. Among Nigerians are the cattle rearers. Culturally, they do not stay in one place; they move with the season.
“Normally, harvest is complete much earlier in the North. They have to go southwards for greener pasture.
“Initially, there was what they call cattle routes and grazing areas. They were marked. Infrastructures were put in terms of dams and veterinary clinics.
“Later, the big ogas that came took over these places and turned them to farms. If we have like 500 cattle, if they did not eat for 24 hours or they want water, you can’t stop them.
“But what they used to do then, if anybody goes outside, he would be arrested, taken before a court and he is fined. If he can pay, the money is taken and given to the farmer. If he can’t pay, the cattle is sold and the farmer is paid. So people are behaving well.
“So when people came and took away the land for the cattle route and grazing area, you find out that from Kaduna to Bayelsa, Nigerians are fighting cattle rearers now.
“When I was in PTF, we made a comprehensive study of cattle routes and grazing areas throughout Nigeria. So I am referring the Governors’ Forum to it and the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. Let them see what they can do and save the situation.”
The President also said there are other people aside from Nigerian cattle rearers involved in the attacks.
He attributed the situation to a former Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi, who he said gave military training to some people, who later returned to their countries at the end of Gaddafi’s regime.
“There are others than Nigerian cattle rearers involved. This is because of what happened in Lybia when Ghadaffi, during his 43 year-regime, trained some people from the Sahel militarily.
“When his regime was overthrown, those people were dispatched to their countries. They found themselves in Boko Haram and others.
“It is a major regional and virtually African problem now. There is one called Al Qaeda, there is Boko Haram and so on. It is a governmental project now to trace them, disarm them, try them and discipline them,” he said.
The President also said he was doing everything possible to end the renewed attacks by militants in the Niger Delta.
He confirmed that he had given the Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas; other service chiefs and the Coordinator of the Amnesty Programme for former Niger Delta militants, Brig.-Gen. Paul Boroh (retd.), specific instructions on the matter.
He said, “What I know is that I was elected by the whole country and the least I can do is to keep the country together somehow. I assure you that we will develop the capacity to do it.
“If you can recall, about the militants, I appointed a retired Brigadier General (Boroh). When I give people assignment, I develop terms of reference for them and I allow them to do their work.
“I understand the problem. I spoke with the Chief of Naval Staff and other service chiefs to work with him and help him to make sure that those who are blowing the installations, sabotaging investments in Nigeria, we will deal with them eventually.
“They are saying that the agreement entered for amnesty, including payments and training and employment were not being met. These are their allegations.
“So we put this officer who is from there to revisit the agreement and get them and see which part of the agreement the Federal Government needs to fulfil.
“The fundamental thing is that we have to secure Nigeria before we can manage it efficiently. I assure you that we are going to do that. Try and develop confidence in our ability to do it eventually.”
When asked about the capacity of this administration to fully implement the 2016 Budget despite the delay, Buhari said that would depend on the technocrats. He attributed the delay in signing the budget to padding which he said was strange to him.
“It (budget implementation) depends on the efficiency of the technocrats. Yes, we have six months to implement the budget. You know why there was a delay.
“There is something called padding. I have been in government since 1975. I was governor of now six states: Borno, Yobe, Bauchi, Gombe, Adamawa, and Taraba, that used to be the North-East. Then, I was in Obasanjo’s cabinet, Petroleum for three and a quarter years. I was Head of State for 20 months.
“I have never heard about that word ‘padding’ until this year. And what does it mean? It means that the technocrats just allowed the government to make its noise, to go and make the presentation to the National Assembly. They will remove it and put their own.
“When we uncovered this, we just had to go back to the basis again. Ministers have to go again and appear before the Minister of Budget and National Planning and make presentations again. This was clearly brought out by the Minister of Health.
“I saw with my own eyes, nobody told me. I was watching NTA and he appeared before a committee that said the minister should come and defend his budget. He looked at what was presented to him as his budget and he said he had nothing to defend, that that was not what he presented.
“Subsequently, we discovered that it was not only the ministry of health. So they allowed us to talk rubbish as government and they do what they like,” the President explained.
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