Meeting on the sidelines of the ongoing Commonwealth Leaders summit in Malta, the two leaders also called on other countries to do more to help fight corruption in Nigeria. At a special session on corruption, chaired by Prime Minister David Cameron, the leaders of Australia, Canada, Singapore, Malta, Sri Lanka, Botswana and Trinidad and Tobago all attended.
According to President Buhari, corruption in the oil sector and outright theft of Nigeria’s crude oil had been exacerbated by the culture of impunity which reigned under previous administrations. He said that corruption in the sector had also thrived because of the ease of transferring illicit funds abroad and the institutional protection given to corrupt officials in the past.
President Buhari added: “Now that we have the political will to stop impunity, we need the cooperation and assistance of the international community. We must all work together to compel multinational oil companies, international financial institutions and international shipping lines to stop aiding and abetting corruption in the oil sector in Nigeria.”
Prime Minister Cameron said that the Commonwealth and the international community must do more to fight corruption and promote good governance. According to the prime minister, dealing with money laundering and making sure that the stopping of stolen money being hidden away in developed countries is absolutely vital.
He added: “In my view, this issue needs to have a much higher billing on the international agenda. Not just because fighting corruption is right in itself but because all the other things we want to achieve as countries and members of the Commonwealth depend on our success in doing so.
“If we want fair economic growth, we need to reject corruption and if we want to see fair and sustainable development, we need to deal with corruption. It is an issue for all of us because so much of the money stolen from developing countries is hidden in developed countries."
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