Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola was a guest on BBC's Hard Talk on Tuesday August 2nd where he was interviewed on issues of national development, power, corruption and his administration as governor of Lagos state.
Reacting to former UK Prime Minister, David Cameron's comment that Nigeria is a fantastically corrupt country, Fashola said;
"I think that the former Prime minister was speaking tongue in cheek because if this country places host to the reception of stolen properties, then there is a moral issue, very strong moral issue and if I remember my criminal law, its is as much as an offence to receive stolen property as to actually stealing and I think that all of those who make those kind of comments and become havens for proceeds of corruption need to do a rethink. The President has said clearly that he is not interested in an apology, he is interested in having the money back. If you have something that is stolen, give it back "he said
On allegations that he spent N70 million on his website while in office as governor of Lagos state, Fashola said
"I have made my response on those matters.We need to be circumspect and very careful while whistle-blowing and transparency is all going on. We need to also understand that some people have worked very hard in their lives to earn their reputation. People who make those allegations must also be ready to stand up and verify them at least. Nobody has accused me of privately benefiting myself. They were allegations that I think at the very best were a clear misunderstanding of how procurement process worked".
Watch the full interview here