I will be merciless and relentless against looters

I will be merciless and relentless against looters – Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari has declared that his administration's war against corruption will remain "fearless, relentless and merciless".

The president emphasised that he would be merciless and relentless in pursuing all those who abused public trust.

President Buhari stated this in Malabo on Tuesday while interacting with members of the Nigerian Community in Equatorial Guinea.

Buhari, who was on a two-day visit to Malabo for talks with President Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea on further measures to protect the people and resources of the Niger Delta and Gulf of Guinea, also said that Nigerians would soon see how some of the elite conspired to run the country down.

He stated: "We will be merciless and relentless in pursuing all those who abused public trust. Nigerians will see how some of the elite conspired to run the nation down".

President Buhari condemned recent political violence in Rivers State, describing the killing of people over political differences as primitive, barbaric and unacceptable.

The president vowed: "We will deal decisively with all sponsors of violence. I have given the security services clear directives in this regard. We will show that violence in any form will no longer be tolerated before, during or after elections".

Buhari also disclosed that his administration would encourage the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to explore the possibility of Nigerians abroad voting in the 2019 general elections.

He noted that some African countries had started allowing their citizens resident abroad to vote in national elections, saying he fully empathised with the desire of Nigerians in the diaspora to vote in national elections.

President Buhari pledged that he would therefore do all within his powers to fulfill that desire, adding that "I want all Nigerians to know that I respect them and their right to choose their leaders"