President Muhammadu Buhari has vowed to probe the $16 Billion failed power project initiated during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, saying his government will recover the monies and expose those behind the scam.
President Buhari who spoke in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa state capital, during the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential campaign rally, said he was unrelenting in his pursuit of those who looted the nation’s resources.
The President who landed at the government helipad was received by the Bayeksa state Govenor, Seriake Dickson, before he preceded to the pay a courtesy call on the traditional rulers in the state.
Thousands of party faithful from the eight local governments in the state and hundreds of youths from the Hausa community has conveyed at the venue of the rally in their large numbers, giving security agencies a hectic time.
Speaking at the Ox Bow lake pavilion, President Buhari, said his administration despite the daunting challenges has been able to curtail the security issues in the North-east while the economy is on the way to being self-reliance.
He said, “The previous Government mentioned on their own that they spent 16 billion, American dollars for power but you are better witnesses than me. Where is the power? Where is the money? We will follow them, eventually God willing we will catch them and get our money back.
“I don’t have anything new to say, outside what people have spoken earlier, but I assure you that in APC Government, we take the problems of security, economy and infrastructure seriously and we are also promising that we will make people who occupy Executive positions both in state and federal level to be accountable to the people.
“If you could recall, when I came in 2015 under our great party, you could recall the party articulated three fundamental issues, which we campaigned on, and we were voted on.These are security, economy, and fighting corruption.
“On security, I mentioned earlier to our traditional institution, but the people of the North East are the biggest witnesses, of what we have achieved because when we came at least 17 local governments were under Boko Haram but as I speak now, none is under them.
“They have resorted to training young men and women, provide them with explosives, and ask them to go and explode it in churches, in mosques, in marketplaces, and in motorparks, but that has been rare now.
“Secondly, on economy, when we came in we have very, very high bills of importation of foodstuffs, but we thank God for this previous three raining seasons, we raalised bountiful harvest. Government has made fertilizer,and agricultural input available and sell them at half price, that they used to be sold.
“That has taken away a lot of able bodied persons out of unemployment market, kept them busy, and they are earning respectful living that affects the economy, it affects security.
“The third point is fighting corruption, under this system, it has been very difficult but I have been mentioning it everywhere I go that all those who are in place of accountability should be prepared to account for it.
“Those that abused it were taken before the court, a number of them are in jail, and a number of there properties, taken away it will be sold and put in the treasury to continue building infrastructure.
“You know we are building roads, the railway was virtually killed but we are rebuilding it, and there was no power we will bring power back.
“The party is very strong now, and this will be demonstrated from next Saturday onwards. I assure you that we will maintain focus in securing this country and managing it properly.”
The former governor of Bayelsa state and leader of the party in the state, Timpre Sylva, and the Minister of State for Agriculture and rural development, Henieken Lokpobiri, urged Bayelsans to vote massively for the Presiddent Buhari and the APC come Saturday.
