The anti-corruption campaign of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration has received a major boost with the British Government promising to make available to the federal government information on Nigerians who own property in that country next year, a presidential aide has said.

This was made known by the Executive Secretary of the Presidential Advisory Committee against Corruption, PACAC, Bolaji Owosanoye, in an interaction with newsmen in New York, USA.

Owosanoye noted that the negotiations had reached advanced stage, adding that it is a significant step forward in the fight against corruption.

He said: “Britain has promised that by 2018, she will provide Nigeria with the information about who owns what and where; that’s very helpful.

“These include all the houses that have been bought by public officials or accounts that are held by public officials on which they are right now not paying taxes or which they cannot explain the sources.

“So if you cannot buy a house in England, you have to look for somewhere else.

“But if all countries criminalise this, then it becomes much more difficult unless you want to buy the house on Mars.”

The PACAC Executive Secretary maintained that the Nigerian government is working hard to make sure that there is no safe haven for corrupt officials to run to.

He also stressed that Nigeria and other African countries, who are victims of illicit financial flows, must stand up to developed countries and demand for a stop on illicit financial flows from developing countries.

“Receiving states – the countries of the North – need to be proactive to block the proceeds of crime even before a request is made by victim countries,” Owosanoye said.

“This is because, in many situations, it is clear that illegality is taking place.

“We think that reversing the burden of proof to improve the confiscation of criminal proceeds of crime would help, especially when we are going after the asset and not necessarily the person.

“If the person who claims to own the asset would not cooperate in giving information, then this should be a point in favour of the state,” Owosanoye said.

He argued that the burden of proof for criminal proceeds should be on the suspect and not the government.

Citing an instance with the case involving former Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Andrew Yakubu, Owosanoye said: “A former Managing Director of the NNPC was found with nine million dollars cash and over 70 million naira in his house in a small place he has built.

“He said the money is a gift. He was asked if he could tell the very generous angels who gave him this money.

“He’s not been able to provide that information. That sort of disposition should be used to penalise a claimant of asset who cannot justify the origin of the asset.

“The proposed “Unexplained Wealth Order in England,” which hopefully we were told would pass through the legal process this year, should really help to deepen the conversation in this regard.

“It (Unexplained Wealth Order) would help to quickly recover assets,” he said.