Corruption, major challenge in Nigeria – Ndume

Sen. Ali Ndume (APC-Borno) has decried the level of corruption in Nigeria, saying the trend is a major challenge facing the nation.

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Ndume stated this during an interactive session with newsmen in Kano on Saturday.

“Our major challenge in this country is corruption. Up till now, we have no law that can proactively or reactively address the issue of corruption in the country.

“If you see somebody in our system, especially in politics or government, and he is not corrupt, then he is lucky that he is God-fearing.

“Otherwise, it is only in Nigeria that you steal money and you walk freely and you are celebrated.

“If you come into an area like this, people would start lobbying you and prostrate before you even when they know that the money was stolen.

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“It is only in this country that somebody had no money yesterday or last week,  but the following week he buys 10 cars; buys jets and his family will celebrate with him,” he said.

The lawmaker said that in other developed countries, people would ask how, when, and where he made his money but the reverse is the case here.

Ndume said he had made several efforts to pass a law on unexplained wealth in Nigeria, but that such endeavors never saw the light of day.

He said he asked a former Head of State if  he could sign an Executive Bill to that effect but he  declined.

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“Up till now, there is no law on unexplained wealth Act in Nigeria and there is no Executive Order on it,” Ndume said.

He expressed concern over the hunger in the country and called for increased cultivation of food crops to address the problem.

“There is hunger in the land and up till now we have not cultivated up to five percent of our land, Nigeria is blessed with massive arable land.

According to him, Nigeria is blessed with cultivable land everywhere that could be used to grow food crops and feed the nation.