Corruption: Buhari has letters implicating Goodluck Jonathan

– President Muhammadu Buhari is reportedly in possession of some letters written by former president Goodluck Jonathan implicating him of corruption 

– According to Buhari, stability of the nation’s political system seemed to be at stake if the EFCC should go after Jonathan or any former President or military leader


President Muhammadu Buhari is reportedly in possession of some letters written by former president Goodluck Jonathan implicating him of corruption, Punch is reporting. According to the report, Mr Jonathan in some of the letter had requested “off-budget funds”- which means as funds not provided for or included in the regular Federal Government budget; funded by sources other than the federal budget.

his information is contained in in Buhari’s authorised biography, ‘Muhammadu Buhari: The Challenges of Leadership in Nigeria’, written by Prof. John Paden. But the author said the President’s purpose of waging the corruption war was not to jail former top government officials but to retrieve the stolen funds.

He said the stability of the nation’s political system seemed to be at stake if the EFCC should go after Jonathan or any former President or military leader for that matter. “The fact that Buhari was enlisting the help of international community in the probes lent weight to the seriousness of his effort – and also meant that alleged offenders had nowhere to hide.

“Would the trail lead to former President Jonathan himself? As of the early months of 2016, it appeared that the EFCC was not going after Jonathan. Nor was it going after former President Obasanjo. “The question of the stability of the entire political system seemed at stake. “In addition, a number of senior military officers, who had served as Heads of State – from Babangida to Abubakar – seemed off-limits.

“Indeed, rumours swirled that if the probes went after senior officers, they might push back because they had extensive networks in the active military services. “At the same time, the knowledge such heavyweights possessed could well be traded for immunity and would help to illuminate the patterns and sources of corruption. “Buhari had letters in his possession showing Jonathan’s requests for off-budget funds. But Buhari’s larger purpose was not to put former high-level officials in jail. “Rather, it was to retrieve stolen funds and to change the political culture of the country.”
184 civil servants disciplined for their roles in the padding of 2016 budget The book has also revealed that 184 civil servants were disciplined for their roles in the padding of 2016 budget. It added that of the 184, 22 top officials were dismissed from service. “Buhari himself was frustrated by earlier padding of the budget by bureaucrats in some of the ministries.

“This was interpreted by the Buhari team as an attempt to scuttle the innovations proposed by the President by inflating their costs. “When Buhari found out, he was reported to be angry and ordered a purge of the ministries involved from the Director-General down. “Twenty-two top officials were dismissed, including the budget director. In all, 184 civil servants were disciplined.”

He added that even after the budget had been adjusted downward by the National Assembly, the country would still have to borrow $3.5bn, as a result of the drop in oil prices.