Umar Dangiwa: CBN probe will expose fraud under Buhari’s watch

Umar Dangiwa, a retired colonel and former military administrator of Kaduna, has claimed that the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari is the most corrupt government in the country.

In an interview with The Sun, on Sunday, Dangiwa alleged that a lot of fraud was perpetuated by “the cabal” under Buhari’s leadership.

He added that the ongoing probe at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will expose the “monumental financial fraud” that happened in the former administration.

“It will reveal how the president’s cabal fraudulently enriched itself through forex round-tripping and anchor borrowers fraud. The claim that the president was unaware is false,” Dangiwa said.

“He was made aware by the DSS and advised to cause the arrest and investigation of the CBN governor. He was prevailed upon by beneficiaries not to take any action which would expose them. One will not be wrong in saying that Nigeria has become a truly fantastically corrupt nation in the last eight years.”

He said the level of nepotism under the former president ensured that appointments, particularly in the sensitive area of security, were skewed in favour of his section of the country.

“President Buhari had the opportunity to declare his assets publicly before and after his presidency as he promised to do while campaigning for the office. He failed to do so,” Dangiwa said.

“His assets declaration to the Katsina farmers is meaningless and doesn’t meet the legal requirements and expectations of the general public. It also does not matter if he left the presidency poorer.

“Truth is that he presided over the most corrupt administration in the history of this country.

“His appointment as AU chairman of anti-corruption, if true, and whatever it means, appears misplaced and amounts to dressing him in borrowed robes.

“Bishop Kukah opined that ‘Buhari’s government amplified corruption morally and financially,’ while Chief Femi Falana said ‘corruption waxed stronger under Buhari.’

“These views are shared by most Nigerians. The moral corruption Bishop Kukah must be referring to is President Buhari’s elevation of personal interest over national interest.”

The former military leader said 20 major projects of the federal government were “unethically” cited in Daura to appease the former president, which he said was accepted with gratitude. 

“Someone correctly observed that Daura is sinking under the weight of democratic dividends,” Dangiwa said.

“It was at the height of ethical and moral corruption that the president accepted a gift of an Air Force Reference Hospital from his chief of air staff when Daura did not even have a landing strip.

“The rail line from Kano to Maradi was only approved because it passes through Daura and not for any socio-economic value. It ranks lowest in the nation’s infrastructural priorities. Less so that it is being financed with a $1.9 billion Chinese loan.

“This project must be discontinued. Work so far done should remain a monument of corruption. The two federal roads leading to Daura from Kano and Katsina are being dualised, while all roads leading to the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, are yet to be completed.

“The Lagos-Ibadan expressway connecting the North with the two South Western ports is still under construction. Construction of the East-West Coastal highway has been abandoned.

“The second Niger Bridge remains uncompleted even though it was commissioned by the Buhari administration. General Buhari’s decision to relocate to Daura from Kaduna must be on account of Daura being more urbanised and secure than Kaduna.”