ABUJA, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- Nigeria will soon begin the sales of all unclaimed looted assets which include lands and houses recovered by the government, President Muhammadu Buhari said on Monday.

Buhari said proceeds will be deposited into government treasury as many suspected looters had been denying the ill-gotten assets.

According to him, it was not surprising that the number of those disclaiming the properties traced to them by the country's anti-corruption agencies had increased, because the government was following the right process to recover all looted assets.

"And we are still following the process, you know (in) democracy you have to follow due process and respect the rule of law," Buhari told some of his local political allies in Daura, his homestead in Nigeria's northern state of Katsina.

The most populous African nation has so far dealt with endemic corruption, especially in government circles, using preventive measures and asset recovery as key areas of focus, among other measures taken.

"If the money is in the government treasury, I will see who will come back after we leave office and reclaim them," he added.

The Nigerian government has promised more efforts toward strengthening the whistleblowing policy in the country, saying this has hugely contributed to the breakthrough recorded in the war against corruption and unaccounted wealth.

Last year, the country's minister of justice and attorney general Abubakar Malami said the government was ensuring that various policies that were put in place to fight corruption bring back sanity in every sector.