President Muhammadu Buhari vowed late Tuesday in Riyadh that all those
involved in the “padding” of the 2016 National Budget will face the most
severe punishment.
Addressing the Nigerian Community in Saudi
Arabia, President Buhari condemned the distortion of the budget
proposals by entrenched interests.
The President said that the
unauthorised alterations had completely changed the document from the
one he presented to the National Assembly.
“The culprits will not
go unpunished. I have been a military governor, petroleum minister,
military Head of State and headed the Petroleum Trust Fund.
“Never
had I heard the words “budget padding”. Our Minister of Budget and
National Planning did a great job with his team. The Minister became
almost half his size during the time, working night and day to get the
budget ready, only for some people to pad it.
“What he gave us
was not what was finally being debated. It is very embarrassing and
disappointing. We will not allow those who did it to go unpunished,"
President Buhari vowed.
The President also assured members of the
Nigerian community that his administration was working diligently to
fulfil its campaign promises, particularly on security, unemployment,
and corruption.
Reaffirming his government’s zero tolerance for
corruption, President Buhari said that the war against corruption was a
monumental task that he is determined to tackle successfully.
"We
have zero tolerance for corruption and other unethical practices. We
will deal decisively with anybody found wanting," he promised members of
the Nigerian community.
President Buhari also used the
opportunity of the gathering to brief Nigerians in Saudi Arabia on his
administration’s efforts to end the Boko Haram insurgency and terrorism
in Nigeria.
"Our armed forces have done a great job of dealing
decisively with Boko Haram. We are collaborating with our neighbors in
the operations of the Multinational Joint Task Force to handle security
threats in the sub-region and we have significantly destroyed the
capacity of the insurgents," the President said.
He also spoke on
efforts being made to diversify the Nigerian economy, stressing that
more opportunities are now open for local and foreign investors in the
country.
Femi Adesina
Special Adviser to the President
(Media & Publicity)
February 24, 2016
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