Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, on Monday, dropped a bombshell that 55 Nigerians stole a total of N1.34 trillion between 2006 and 2013.
Nigerians reacted with disbelief, with many calling on Lai Mohammed to put out evidence to substantiate the claims.
In response to the widespread clamour by Nigerians, the Minister has said that the information that would back up his allegations is available in the public domain.
During a visit to the Leadership Hausa newspaper in Abuja on Tuesday, he said checks at the courts and the anti-corruption agencies would reveal the details of the cases, the names of those involved and the amount looted.
“A lot of people have challenged me, what is the source of your figures? I tell them they are just not resourceful enough because these figures are already in the public domain.”
“All it takes for anybody that wants to check is to go and see who are those that are being charged by the EFCC at various courts between 2006 and 2013, you will get their names and the funds against their names.”
“The figures we have are the figures we have put together based on our own research, and they are all available in the public domain.”
Mohammed said it was unfortunate that the revelations were reduced to politicking, when ordinarily, it should elicit widespread public outrage.
