Account For Abacha’s Loot, Activist Tells Buhari, Obj

Renowned human rights activist in Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area of Rivers State, Dr. Kingsley Pepple, has called on former President, Olusegun Obasanjo and President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently account to Nigerian how much was recovered from the late General Sani Abacha’s loot in order to put the records straight.
Pepple made the call in Opobo Town,  while exchanging views with The Tide on the nation’s economy and how to come out of the current recession, stressed that it became imperative for Obasanjo and Buhari to tell the truth about how much was realized from the loot during their administrations.
According to him, Obasanjo should first and foremost tell Nigerians the role of his office that facilitated the recovery process and how it was utilized.
“They should open up on the money recovered from Abacha loot.
They should account for it. Nigerians are eager to get the truth of the matter,  how much was recovered and how it was disbursed.
“Nigerians should wake from their slumber and demand for their tax funds from Obasanjo, Buhari and their cronies as to ascertain how much was recovered and how these leaders utilized it. It is high time we stopped folding our hands and watch our leaders misusing their offices and scarce resources at the detriment of the electorates. Let them tell us where the money is kept or what project they were used for”, he declared.
As he puts it, Obasanjo and Buhari through their mercenaries should let the people know the whereabout of Abacha’s loot in order to pump it into the  economy for rapid and accelerated development for the poor and voiceless masses.
He maintained that it shows disrespect and incompetence on the part of these leaders and pointed out that accountability which is the key to prosperous society should be put into practice.
Pepple, who is the national coordinator of a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), Foundation for Civil Liberty (FOCIL) also commented on the fluctuation of oil price.
“When his predecessor, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan inherited office in 2011, it was paltry sum of $17.8 billion while Buhari met $30 billion, almost ten times of what Jonathan met then, and the price of oil then was $9. When it got to $20, he was beating his chest”.
“I know the price is down now and with time, it will jump up again. What Buhari is doing currently on his trips to overseas is nothing but to waste the scarce resource which would have been used for doing projects across the six geo-political zones”.
Pepple, who described the Biafra agitation as a platform for people of the South-East to make their voices heard, insisted that Biafra was dead.
He said: “I sympathise with people agitating in the country, but what Nigeria needs to do now is to get our economy back on track. “When you have bad economy such is expected. So, I did not see their cause as a threat rather as a platform to get their voices heard.
“Like as I earlier said, the authentic leaders of the South East are concerned about economic situation of Nigeria and I believe when the situation inproves tomorrow, these self rule agitators will sing a new song”, he submitted.

Bethel Sam Toby