*Saraki, Dogara 'should make Lawmakers' budget open'

President Muhammadu Buhari's war on corruption got yesterday a major backing, with former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) Justice Mohammed Uwais and former Ambassador to the United Nations (UN) Prof. Ibrahim Gambari urging him to keep pushing.

Buhari should remain resolute and vigorously pursue corruption suspects, the eminent Nigerians said, describing as callous "the allocation of Nigeria's scarce resources to individuals for political interests at the expense of huge losses of lives and property, especially in the Northeast where the fight against Boko Haram continues to rage". Acting under the umbrella of the Council of the Wise, they said: "Ten months after Nigeria's historic elections that pushed out of power the 16-year PDP government, President Buhari's APC-led government remains trapped by massive state corruption that has almost ground the country to a halt."

They also applauded former President Olusegun Obasanjo for his letter to the National Assembly, calling on Senate President Bukola Saraki and House Speaker Yakubu Dogara to release the expenditure profile of the National Assembly for public scrutiny.

The Executive Director of Savannah Centre for Diplomacy, Democracy and Development (SCDDD) and Nigeria's former Ambassador to Chad, Amb. Abdullahi A. Omaki, spoke on behalf of Justice Uwais and Prof. Gambari. The Council of the Wise operates under the auspices of the SCDDD. Justice Uwais is the Chairman of the Centre. Gambari is the founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

In a statement signed by Omaki, the elder statesmen urged Buhari "to remain resolute in his administration’s fight to free Nigeria from the claws of corporate and individual corruption that have held the country hostage".

They described the President as the only Nigerian politician and leader who has the pedigree to engage this systematic corruption because of his own personal record of high integrity, which was personalised during the campaigns .

The call "is hinged on the mind-boggling revelations on institutional rot that permitted for such callous and heartless looting to take place under the PDP Federal Administration until May 2015."

"The Executive Director notes that President Buhari and APC campaigned on five critical issues; security, corruption, economy, youth employment and the redemption of Nigeria's image world-wide. Savannah Centre notes that although the President was inaugurated on 29th May, 2015, the mass of those that voted for him and his party of Change, began measuring his performance since March 28th, because whatever he uttered after being proclaimed winner of the election determined the course of events in Nigeria and indeed how the rest of the world related with Nigeria.

"Following the huge expectations that followed the APC's presidential victory, the slow phase of governance since President Buhari's inauguration has been a matter of disappointment from his huge supporters who expected him to hit the ground running by positively addressing the concerns of the populace.

"The Savannah Centre notes that while President Buhari's performance in the areas of security has brought sanity to the fight against terror in the North-East of Nigeria and redemption of Nigeria's image in the world, the populace remains apprehensive on the repositioning of the economy as well as the approach in fighting corruption.

"Irrespective of the different perspectives of analysis of the challenges facing Nigeria, Savannah Centre believes that the fight against corruption should remain unrelenting until the institutions of state are repositioned to perform according to the laws establishing them.

"The Centre's position is hinged on the callous nature of allocating national resources for political interest at the expense of huge losses of lives and properties, especially, in the North-East, where the fight against Boko Haram continues to rage.

The continuing revelations regarding the re-looting of Abacha's funds in the name of arms procurement, the savagery of the NNPC, heartless desecration of the Customs, amongst others, necessitate Savannah Centre's call for this fight to be comprehensively fought to save Nigeria and its citizens.

Omaki said the National Assembly should take the side of the people and stressed that Obasanjo deserves the appreciation of all for his letter to the National Assembly's leadership. He noted the tentative response by the Senate President, adding that the nation awaits Senator Saraki's promised detailed reply.

Omaki dismissed the other comments by Senator Dino Melaye and Hon. Abdulrazak Namdas, describing them as self-serving and stressed that the issue is not who initiated corruption but how corruption has been elevated into an art deserving of state honours. He urged all to work together and salvage the country rather than passing the buck.

"The Executive Director of Savannah Centre also advised that the fight against corruption should not be limited to the Federal Government. He stressed that apart from the Federal MDA’s, the judiciary require touch-lighting. Eventually, the state governments, state assemblies and local governments should not be immune from critical evaluation, in the interest of justice in our nation.

"He advised that State Governments should desist from embarking on white elephant projects across the country and concentrate on those that have the capacity to bring immediate reliefs to the people to ensure the impact of dividends of democracy to spread to all. He stressed that rural electricity, provision of bore-holes for potable water, health care centres, fixing schools and feeder roads were much more impactful than the construction of airports embarked by several state governments when they cannot even pay salaries."