Atiku in Town Hall meeting.
Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said he would consider granting amnesty to corrupt persons willing to surrender their loot.
Atiku stated this on Wednesday while appearing with Peter Obi his running mate at a live town hall programme hosted by journalist, Kadaria Ahmed.
Atiku who at a recent event in Lagos admitted he would enrich his friends if elected president told the audience he would consider creating an environment where corrupt former public officials would be allowed to return their loot without being prosecuted.
Event anchor, Kadaria Ahmed, asked him, “Will you consider amnesty to people who have corruption cases and say bring some money and we will go on from there?”
Atiku responded, “Why not? It worked for Turkey. Turkey gave amnesty and all the money abroad came back. The government said that if you bring the money, there is not even taxation. We want you to invest in manufacturing, technology, and real estate. Look at Turkey today. It’s like any other European country in terms of development. They drew a line. Why not, we can consider it.
“I believe there will be need for dialogue between the various branches of government. We are at a crisis point in this country in the issue of fight against corruption. We can’t afford delay. Before we review our procedures and laws, I think there is a need we do something immediately. Then, I believe everybody will understand if you really intend to fight corruption.
“There was a recovery panel set up by President Obasanjo under my chairmanship, the attorney general and the national security adviser. By calling various people who have been alleged to have stolen money, we recovered over $4 billion which we paid back into the treasury. If you are to prosecute these people, up till now, you will still be prosecuting them.”
“Whether it is moral rectitude that you want to achieve or you want to see a fast development of your country,” Atiku asked rhetorically