Atiku Bagudu, Nigeria’s minister of budget and economic planning, is plotting a secret agenda to stop the French government from returning $150 million (N118,486,500,000) public money stolen and stashed in a foreign bank by Nigeria’s former military dictator General Sani Abacha, according to an exclusive report by the Peoples Gazette.
The money, Catherine Colonna, the French Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs, said, in November, would be released to the Nigerian government to accelerate “development projects that will benefit the population.“
But it is yet to be made available till now because Bagudu and his cronies are stalling the process, prolonging the commencement of the designated “developmental projects” to be funded by the money.
The Minister is demanding a $30 million (N23,697,300,000) cut from the stolen funds, an indication of the level of corruption in Africa’s largest economy, as reported by the Peoples Gazette.
Bagudu has a history of stealing from the country’s coffers. He, Peoples Gazette said, is the mastermind behind the money laundering operation that flourished under Abacha. Yet, President Tinubu selected him to head the country’s critical budget ministry.
—Ezinwanne Onwuka reports for TruthNigeria from Abuja.
