Former Military President of Nigeria, General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida has said the government should stay off the production process as a way of curbing corruption in the system.
He revealed this is the recommendation he gave to the leaders of the country but they don’t want to hear it because they don’t like it.
Babangida said the level of corruption among the current crop of politicians is higher and more alarming than what obtained during their time as military leaders.
Speaking during an interview with Trust TV, IBB described the military regime as saints when compared to the level of corruption being carried out by civilian politicians currently ruling the country.
He said, “I sacked a governor for misappropriating N300,000. Now there are people — we read in the papers, thank God there are papers to read and social media and so on— who steal N2 billion, N3 billion and nobody is saying they are corrupt; only us because we are military, that is all.
“I still maintain that we are saints if you compare somebody who is accused of stealing N3 billion to one with N300,000; then I think we are saints.”
He disclosed that he has recommended how to end corruption but it seems nobody wants to hear it because it is coming from him, adding that they don’t like his recommendation as well.
I sold an idea but because it came from me, nobody likes it, nobody will like to hear it,” IBB stated.
He said once the government is not directly involved in some activities and nobody needs to go through them to get things done easily, then corruption will be reduced to the barest minimum as it can be attacked from the source
“Identify areas of corruption and attack them from the source. I read in one of the newspapers where a judge was complaining that they are not well remunerated by the public and that is a sure source of corruption.
“Wherever you have a system where you have a lot of control there will be corruption.
“So what did we try to do? We got government not to be involved in things like production.
“Anything to do with ‘I have to come to you and you will always think you are doing me a favour, so maybe I should reciprocate it’; that is the sort of thing.
“And that is why we introduced freeing the economy; you don’t need a licence to be graded Grade A; your groundnut or cocoa or cotton or whatever it is.
“You don’t need to go to the Central Bank or to go to banks to get foreign exchange.
“There are Bureaux de Change. They set it up in market areas, where you can easily go and get it.
“So the sources of corruption has to be identified and attacked,” he said.
Source; Bibian Anekwe news
