Senate President Bukola Saraki has said recovered proceeds of corruption are being looted by anti-corruption agencies.

Saraki said this in his remarks at the ‘Strategic Retreat on Tracking the Progress of Anti-Corruption Bills in the National Assembly’ in Abuja on Tuesday.

What Saraki said:

• Saraki said the mismanagement of recovered loots is the reason other countries are reluctant to repatriate stashed funds back to Nigeria.
• He added that President Muhammadu Buhari has continued to do everything to fight corruption.

Saraki said, “In related matters, Nigeria is finding it difficult to convince other nations to return funds looted from our treasury.

“This is because of the other nations’ exasperation over the management of returned assets.

The National Assembly has been strident about the opacity shrouding the management of recovered funds, which in many cases get re-looted by the agencies that investigated and recovered them.

“Only recently, Mr. President inaugurated a committee to audit all assets recovered by various government agencies.

“An ad hoc committee of the Senate, which is investigating some administrative infractions in the Executive, has discovered that many properties recovered from a fugitive from the law have not been accounted for by the investigating agency.

“This gives the global community great concern about the commitment of Nigeria to the anti-corruption drive.

“We must work hard to erase this global impression because it is not a representation of who we are.

“The passage of these bills, which is the subject of this retreat, will illuminate the unflinching resolve of the National Assembly towards the anti-corruption efforts of the government; and should secure international confidence in Nigeria’s handling of the tricky issues around corruption.”

Azeez