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Buhari denies probing Kachikwu, deplores blackmailing of government officials

By Mohammad Abubakar
20 July 2016   |   4:20 am
President Muhammadu Buhari has denied media report that he had instituted a probe into the crude oil swap deals under the watch of the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu

• Anti-graft war not one-sided, says Osinbajo

President Muhammadu Buhari has denied media report that he had instituted a probe into the crude oil swap deals under the watch of the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu.

In his reaction to the insinuations, the President through his Special Adviser on Media, Femi Adesina, yesterday appealed to Nigerians to ignore orchestrated attempts to sully the integrity of ministers and other senior government officials being tarred with the brush of corruption without concrete evidence.

An online platform had last Sunday claimed that Kachikwu was being investigated for crude oil swap deals and gas lifting during his tenure as Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

The President, who appealed for decent and civilised comments, particularly on issues of integrity of those who are serving the country, said: “Terrible and unfounded comments about other people’s integrity are not good. We are not going to spare anybody who soils his hands, but people should please wait till such individuals are indicted.”

He, therefore, reiterated the administration’s commitment to probity, accountability and integrity, promising that transparency remains a watchword, which would never be trifled with.

Meanwhile, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has denied suggestions that the fight against graft by the Buhari administration was lopsided, saying nothing could be farther from the truth.

In a media chat at the end of the 27th African Union Summit in Kigali, Rwanda, the Vice President insisted that the persons listed in the arms scandal probe were not people who were politically exposed, but personnel who were still serving in the Army during the period under review.

A statement from his media office quoted him as saying: “I think it’s entirely absurd, I think the view that Buhari’s fight against corruption is one-sided is absurd and without foundation or basis whatsoever. We look at corruption from all possible facets.”

Osinbajo described the outcome of the summit as a good outing for Africa, saying it afforded African leaders the opportunity to review their different national programmes in view of the agenda of the summit, noting that the efforts and programmes of the Buhari administration were well received.

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