Confusion Hits Senate as Suspicious N206Bn Arms Purchase Is Found in Humanitarian Affairs Ministry’s Budget

There was drama at the Nigerian Senate on Thursday, December 1, after the minister of humanitarian affairs, disaster management and social development, Sadiya Farouq, informed senators that the N206 billion found in the ministry’s budget was for the purchase of military equipment.

Edujandon.com reports that the minister had earlier disowned any involvement with such an amount of money while stating that it was inserted into the budget by the finance ministry without her knowledge.

Following this, the senators had invited Farouq and her colleague in the finance ministry but Zainab Ahmed failed to appear before the senate to clear the dust raised over the mysterious budget item.

However, at the resumed budget defence on Thursday, Farouq told the lawmakers that her team at the ministry did not understand the item on the budget when they first saw it.

She said:

“On the N206 billion, when we saw it, we didn’t understand what it was meant for because the explanation wasn’t clear.
“If you put N206 billion in Humanitarian Affairs Ministry’s budget and the narration is the purchase of military equipment, definitely something is wrong.

“That’s why I said I’m not going to say anything about it until we get clarification from the Ministry of Finance. If we had requested N206 billion for a different project and then in the appropriation bill, it is reading something else, we will not own it.”

Further pressing for clarification, the senators inquired from Farouq whether she requested N206 billion for another project, but it arrived with another narration.

To this she replied:

“It is not exactly that way, and that’s why we need that clarity from finance ministry”.

The call for President Muhammadu Buhari to order an investigation into the intervention programs of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development has been condemned.

The condemnation was made on Monday, November 21, by the Centre for Africa Liberation and Socio-Economic Rights.

According to the Centre, the ministry should rather than being investigated be commended for its efforts towards uplifting Nigerians from poverty.

Meanwhile, Edujandon.com had previously reported that the conviction of Abdulrasheed Bawa, the chairman of the EFCC for contempt was set aside by the high court of the Federal Capital Territory.

It was reported that during a proceeding on Thursday, November 10, the presiding judge, Justice Chizoba Oji read out the court’s decision to void the initial ruling.

According to the commission, Bawa was not in contempt of court since he had adhered to the order that the respondent’s Range Rover be released and by many internal memoranda, the applicant had initiated the EFCC’s internal mechanism to ensure the payment of the sum of N40,000,000 to the respondent.

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