Jailing Diezani will send a signal - Sanusi

Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II says if embattled former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke is jailed and convicted for corrupt charges, it will send a signal to other corrupt officials in Nigeria. Sanusi said this in an interview with US TV news,

"If she (Diezani) goes to court and is jailed for example, it sends a signal I think that there is a day of reckoning. In Nigeria, there is no accountability at all and that is why I think Nigerian corruption is worse than in many parts of the world because it is the worst type of corruption. Its stealing".

He went on to say that under the last administration, a billion dollar was stolen every month.

"Frankly, I think a billion dollars under Jonathan a month was about what we were losing.”

 Sanusi said the stealing of oil money was done via the award of oil blocs to groups of friends who do not have any knowledge of oil wells.

"Basically what it does is to allow a group of friends who do not have any kind of operating background to pay $50 million to access to crude oil in blocs valued at over $2 billion. and they just take the crude, ship it out and don't return the money. and there is no trace of where the money has gone. Someone gets a contract to lift crude from the terminals to the refineries. and in-between that crude is stolen in the high seas".