Alwan Hassan, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has alleged that corruption was widespread during the tenure of the late President Muhammadu Buhari.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Tuesday, Hassan described Buhari’s eight years in office as a period of unchecked power and minimal oversight. He argued that most ministers who served under the former president should face prosecution.

“95 per cent of the ministers under Buhari should be in jail by now,” Hassan claimed, citing officials like ex-Justice Minister Abubakar Malami and former Labour Minister Chris Ngige.

He added, “There has never been a time when ministers got free hands without supervision like Buhari’s eight years in office. The former president even told them to keep their documents ready because there will come a day when they’ll be asked to explain themselves. Maybe he has seen what they are doing.”

Hassan, however, acknowledged that a small fraction of officials were not involved in corruption, describing them as “the 5 per cent,” noting that very few people served honorably during that period.

He explained that the lack of oversight created a “free-for-all” environment: “There has never been a time when government budgets were 100 per cent released without interference by the presidency, like Buhari’s time. Ministers were given free rein. Everyone was his own cabal. If you got the chance to meet Buhari and explain things, you became a cabal.”

Hassan contrasted this with the current administration of President Bola Tinubu, praising its hands-on approach to governance. “This government is hands-on. If you’re talking about government finance, it’s Asiwaju. Everyone knows this. Contractors like me are still shouting about unpaid sums. He is careful; he knows his priorities. It is not business as usual,” he said.