The way he has been serious about his PDP looters’ list, Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, seems ready to prove to the whole world that the APC government is nothing but a company of spotless men of unimpeachable integrity.

That is exactly the challenge Senator Shehu Sani has thrown to the government, asking it to produce a “list of saints” as the positive counter-evidence for the PDP looters lists it has so far published. The Kano central senator has often played the character of the palace chief unfazed by the image and majesty of the king in terms of offering criticisms. His latest move may be his most daring yet, and it may not be out of place to suggest he would not fancy his fierce adversary occupying the Kaduna Government House making the saints list.

Public perception about President Buhari’s administration reflects a frustration with the failings in fulfilling the anti-corruption pledges it made during the campaigns for the 2015 elections. The government has largely diverted every accusation of corruption to the 16 years of the PDP, even if many of those who were in power in those years constitute a significant portion of the APC membership and government. Senate President Bukola Saraki, a two-term PDP governor, immediately comes to mind.

It remains to be seen if the Minister will take up the task of drafting a saints list. Will there be as many as the 23 names that were on the last looters list published? No former governor who served under the APC platform is involved in any case with the EFCC or other anti-corruption agencies, a point that could be used to perform a general canonization on all such past governors as qualifying to be called “saints”. On the contrary, the PDP looters’ list published by the Buhari government last week included Jonah Jang of Plateau amongst former service chiefs and ministers.

If it were not a distraction from tackling the many security challenges in the country, the Lai Mohammed’s looters’ list may have elicited public cheer. Nigeria’s past leaders responsible for filling their personal treasuries with the nation’s wealth should be made to answer to their crimes; returning all of their stolen wealth is the least that should be desired. However, the bickering over PDP looters is perhaps a play to Nigerians for re-election in 2019.To Minister Lai Mohammed, the PDP remains as corrupt as it was in 2015, hence should not be trusted by Nigerians.

Supposing that is believable, where is the evidence of an uncorrupt APC between 2015 and now? The Minister may want to oblige us a few names.