See how UK newspapers reported Buhari’s reply to Cameroun
The online medium said the Nigerian president demanded action from David Cameron rather than an apology after the Prime Minister branded his country ‘fantastically corrupt’.
According to the medium, Muhammadu Buhari made his frustration clear as he addressed a Commonwealth conference in London this Wednesday in the wake of Mr Cameron’s toe-curling gaffe.
Clutching a glass as he made small talk with the Queen at a Buckingham Palace reception, the PM was caught on camera being indiscreet about the countries he had invited to a key anti-corruption summit tomorrow.
Aides to Mr Buhari, who has mounted a high-profile battle against corruption, expressed ‘shock’ at the unguarded comment.
The Sun
The Sun of London caption the comment from Buhari this way Yes my country is corrupt and I want help to fix the problem, says Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari agrees with David Cameron’s comment and says he wants his country’s assets back
The paper said NIGERIA’S president is not going to ask David Cameron to apologise for saying the country is corrupt – because he agrees.
Speaking in London at an anti-corruption conference today, Muhammadu Buhari mentioned the moment when the Prime Minister was caught on camera telling the Queen corrupt countries pocket our aid cash.
Buhari said: “I am not going to demand any apology from anybody.
“What would I do with an apology?”
Instead he said he wanted a return of the assets that were taken out of his country and sent to Britain.
The Guardian of London
The UK Guardian captioned its headline this way, Nigeria not seeking a Cameron apology, but ‘wants its assets back
The paper went on to say that President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria has said he does not want an apology from David Cameron for calling his country fantastically corrupt, but a return of the billions taken out of his country and sent to the UK.
Speaking at a Commonwealth anti-corruption conference, he said: “What would I do with an apology? I need something tangible. I am not going to demand any apology from anyone. What I am demanding is a return of assets.”
Around $37bn (£25.6bn) in stolen money from Nigeria has been routed through London, Nigeria’s anti-corruption chief, Ibrahim Mahu, said at the conference.
Buhari said it was well established that Nigerian assets were being stolen on an industrial scale, often being sent through financial centres such as London. The country had lost billions through stolen oil and leading politicians taking money. It was now facing disaster, he said.
“With the collapse of the oil price we need every cent we can get now just to pay salaries, if not for anything else.”
Asked at the event if Nigeria was a “fantastically corrupt” country, Buhari thought for a moment and said: “Yes.”
He refused, however, to say whether he regarded Cameron’s remarks as rude, saying that Britain had led in trying to track down former Nigerian government members who had acted disgracefully.
The Mirror
The Mirror Newspaper of UK said in it headline that Nigeria demands return of stolen assets after David Cameron’s awkward ‘corrupt’ gaffe
It went ahead to say that the President of Nigeria says he doesn’t need David Cameron to say sorry for calling his country ‘fantastically corrupt’ in front of the Queen – but he wants his country’s assets back.
President Muhammadu Buhari says he has no need for an apology, but demanded the return of assets – such as stolen oil money – stashed in the UK and Crown territories.
He told the PM’s anti-corruption summit Nigerian oil was being stolen “on an industrial scale” and was often funnelled through global financial centres, including London.
He said: “What would I do with an apology? I need something tangible. I am not going to demand any apology from anyone. What I am demanding is a return of assets.”
He called for a multi-state agency to be created to tackle the “hydra-headed menace of corruption.”
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