Nigerian gov't vows to sustain war against corruption

The Nigerian government Tuesday said it was not to be discouraged by the recent setbacks in the war against corruption, promising that the serial negative outcome of corruption cases that were recorded at the high court level would not dampen the anti-graft battle.

In a statement made available to Xinhua in Lagos, Nigeria's economic hub, Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, assured that the government has appealed against all the negative decisions, and will vigorously canvass its case at the level of the Court of Appeal.

The minister said all the judgments are being rigorously reviewed to determine whether there were errors on our part or whether the government is the victim of mischief.

"The war against corruption is going to be long, tough and arduous, but this administration is equipped, physically, mentally and intellectually, for the long haul," he added.

"We must win this war because the law is our side, the people are on our side and God is on our side. This is only the beginning, so any setback will not deter or discourage us," Mohammed said.

According to him, Nigeria cannot afford unnecessary technicalities as far as the war against corruption is concerned, especially because of the adverse and devastating consequences of corruption on the polity.

He said the government is more determined than ever to recover as much of the plundered funds as possible and use them to put the youths back to work, fix roads and other infrastructure, equip hospitals and universities and invest in electricity. Endit