President Muhammadu Buhari's recent claim of inheriting almost an empty treasury from the Jonathan administration came as a huge surprise to many Nigerians after the new government had initially acknowledged a balance of over $30 billion.

Dr Abubakar Sulaiman, a former minister and deputy chairman, National Planning Commission (NPC), in a statement, described Buhari and the APC's statement as baseless, “unscientific and unfair”, stressing that the immediate past administration “left behind close to US $30billion.”

Dr Sulaiman said, “Buhari's government can’t tell us that there is no Excess Crude Account (ECA), Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) in addition to the above $30 billion. Are they saying the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and related agencies had not in the last one month been generating revenue?”  

“Until they are able to prove they had no receipts from these government agencies in the last one month, Nigerians can't buy into Mr President’s claims of an empty treasury.”

It is on record that President Obama inherited US$3 trillion debt, a collapsed banking sector and mortgage industry, yet he never raised any alarm. None of these has happened in Nigeria under Jonathan, according to Sulaimon.

“It will be misleading, therefore, for our respected President Muhammadu Buhari and indeed the ruling APC to claim to have met an empty treasury,” he said.

He further reminded the new government that “aspiration to governance is a call of meeting and confronting challenges headlong. So, we urge the APC-led government to hit the ground running as promised Nigerians by confronting the challenges”.

He warned that the former president, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, must not be painted a waster and looter of the nation’s treasury before the generality of Nigerians, while the man was described in some quarters are tight-hand when it came to spending government money.

In the last one week, Nigeria Reserve left by Jonathan has been reduced by $600,000,000 by the new government yet they met empty treasury. Buhari bought his customised S600 Maybach Mercedes official car valued about N500,000,000, and other cars in that range, yet he met empty treasury, he said.

According to him, Buhari is paying for his numerous foreign trips alongside large entourage, and throwing lavish parties for APC supporters in the villa and Transcorp Hotel, running into billions, forgetting that millions of Nigerian workers have not received their wages, yet he met empty treasury.

All APC transition committee members are staying in Transcorp Hotel at the rate of N500,000 and N350,000 a night, but Jonathan advised his own committee members to be coming from their Abuja homes to save cost, he said.