Former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
By Chuks Okocha
Conference of Political Parties (CNPP) Monday expressed reservation over the concerns by former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Ibrahim Babangida on the security situation in the country
The CNPP urged the former leaders to purge themselves of the corruption that heralded their tenure of office by returning public funds allegedly looted during their tenure.
In a statement signed by the National Publicity Secretary of CNPP, Osita Okechukwu, the coalition of opposition parties, said, “we welcome the joint statement of Generals Olusegun Obasanjo and Ibrahim Babangida, former presidents as per the insecurity imbroglio in the land. Their statement is noble, patriotic and clearly the passionate concern of elder statesmen, which must be matched with action”.
However, the statement said while the opposition parties
applaud the joint statement from the two former presidents, “whatever robust security measures are put in place to contain the situation, as is normal in such circumstances; they must be complemented with an equally intensive process of community involvement.”
In this regard, they called on Obasanjo and Babangida to fast-track intensive community involvement by returning the billions of United States dollars allegedly stolen under their watch.
Accordingly, the coalition of opposition parties said, “it is our candid view that if the billions of USD siphoned during the Gulf War Oil Windfall under General Babaginda’s watch and billions of USD fleeced off under General Obasanjo’s watch are returned to the Federation Account, it is enough to fully engage millions of unemployed youths.
“It is indisputable that the monies stolen under the two regimes are more than enough to complete the Mambilla Hydro-Power Plant, Kano-Lagos and Maiduguri-Port Harcourt Modern Rail- lines and two refineries of 500,000 barrels per day capacity. This could have stimulated employment and kept the Boko Haram insurgents, kidnappers and other scoundrels busy. This is real community involvement”, the statement said.
CNPP said that it is fresh in the minds of Nigerians how Obasanjo rebuffed the entreaties of the Swiss government to include other looters of the country’s commonwealth in his request for General Sani Abacha’s looted fund.