Former Plateau State governor Joshua Dariye believes that corruption will be eradicated in the country “with collective will and the resolve of every Nigerian.”
The ex-governor, who spoke on Channels Television’s NewsNight programme aired on Monday, said his conviction alongside a former governor of Taraba State Jolly Nyame for corruption charges has not in any way ended graft which is ubiquitous in the country.
“Dariye and Nyame were jailed. Has it ended corruption? Like I told My Lordship, you can jail me for 200 years, if that will end corruption, I will say glory be to God,” he said.
Dariye, who was convicted of stealing N1.16 billion while serving as Plateau governor from 1999 to 2007, was on April 14, 2022 granted pardon by the Council of State led by President Muhammadu Buhari.
He was pardoned alongside Nyame, who was equally convicted of stealing N1.6 billion and the two were released from Kuje Custodial Centre on August 8, 2022.
However, speaking on the programme, Dariye, who thanked the President for his pardon, said his imprisonment was politically motivated, arguing that some persons did worse but were spared.
Asked how to end corruption in the country, Dariye said, “If we want to end corruption, it will not be a one-day issue; you will take corruption to cure corruption. And if you start delivering policies, let me just tell you for example: If the railway is working, without these people sabotaging, it will reduce a lot of hardship on our people, it will reduce the prices of commodities, farm produce…
“Things are not working, some people are benefitting from it, they are frustrating government measures,” he noted.
The former Senator for Plateau Central Senatorial District also said he won’t be running for any political office in 2023. “I am not running this time around, I am taking a break,” he added.