By Adadareporters
Sequel to the suspension of the humanitarian affairs and poverty alleviation minister, Ms Betta Edu, and her later invitation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission over alleged misappropriation of N585 million, a public affairs analyst, Sir Anuenyi Abuchi, has tasked President Bola Tinubu to ‘extend the searchlight to other ministries’.
Abuchi, a veteran journalist, spoke in Enugu during a programme monitored by our reporter.
He commended President Tinubu for being proactive, adding that it was a deviation ‘from former President Muhammadu Buhari’s era’.
In his words, “The emerging revelation is what has been obtainable in Nigeria over the years. It is simply the microcosm, and I commend President Tinubu for removing sentiments, and suspending her immediately so that she won’t be working for the same system that is trying her. Former President Buhari would have been quiet if it were his era.”
According to him, there were procedures for approval of public funds, but regretted that some political appointees ‘assume office with the mindset to steal’.
In his words, “There are laid-down rules to disburse public funds. But the officials choose not to comply. They assume offices with the premeditated mindsets to corrupt the system. On assumption of office, our office-holders come in with a retinue of aides, whose goal is to hijack the system. They make regular civil servants irrelevant, and by that way, they misappropriate funds by jettisoning approved procedures of financial disbursement.
“Betta Edu decided to override the Due Process Office with impunity. That is why she had the gut to issue a memo to the Accountant General of the Federation to transfer such sum to a private account.”
He charged the media to help expose corrupt officials in the government, regretting that ‘the opposition is dead’ because ‘the Labour Party, Peoples Democratic Party and All Progressives Grand Alliance have all joined the system’.
Our correspondent reports that Dr Edu had gone to EFCC headquarters in Abuja for questioning regarding the alleged N585 million fraud in her ministry.
