President Muhammdu Buhari Tueday night ordered the arrest
of the former National Security Adviser, NSA, Col. Sambo Dasuki (Rtd), for allegedly
siphoning billions of dollars earmarked for arms purchases.
In ordering the arrest, President Buhari observed that
the actions of the erstwhile NSA brought the nation to international ridicule
as the failure to procure the arms incapacitated the military in the face of
the insurgency orchestrated by the Boko Haram sect.
A statement by the Special Adviser to the President on
Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, stated that Dasuki expended
$2,193,815,000.83 on arms, a figure he said did not include grants received by
the police and the Department of State Services, DSS, from state governments.
The statement read thus: “As part of the findings, the
committee has analyzed interventions from some organizations that provided
funds to the Office of the National Security Adviser, Defence Headquarters,
Army Headquarters, Naval Headquarters, and Nigerian Air Force Headquarters,
both in local and foreign currencies.
“So far the total extra budgetary interventions
articulated by the committee is Six Hundred and Forty Three Billion, Eight
Hundred and Seventeen Million, Nine Hundred and Fifty Thousand, Eight Hundred
and Eighty Five Hundred Naira and Eighteen Kobo (N643,817,955,885.18).
“The foreign currency component is to the tune of Two
Billion, One Hundred and Ninety Three Million, Eight Hundred and Fifteen
Thousand US Dollars and Eighty Three Cents ($2,193,815,000.83).
“These amounts exclude grants from the state governments
and funds collected by the DSS and Police. It was observed that in spite of
this huge financial intervention, very little was expended to support defence
procurement.
“The committee also observed that of 513 contracts
awarded at $8,356,525,184.32; N2,189,265,724,404.55 and €54,000.00; Fifty Three
(53) were failed contracts amounting to $2,378,939,066.27 and
N13,729,342,329.87 respectively.
“Interestingly, it was noted that the amount of foreign
currency spent on failed contracts was more than double the $1bn loan that the
National Assembly approved for borrowing to fight the insurgency in the North
East. “The committee also discovered
that payments to the tune of Three Billion, Eight Hundred and Fifty Million
Naira (N3, 850,000,000.00) were made to a single company by the former NSA
without documented evidence of contractual agreements or fulfilment of tax
obligations to the federal goverment.
“Further findings revealed that between March 2012 and
March 2015, the erstwhile NSA, Lt Col MS Dasuki (rtd) awarded fictitious and
phantom contracts to the tune of N2,219,188,609.50, $1,671,742,613.58 and
€9,905,477.00. The contracts which were said to be for the purchase of four
Alpha Jets, 12 helicopters, bombs and ammunition were not executed and the
equipment were never supplied to the Nigerian Air Force, neither are they in
its inventory.
“Even more disturbing was the discovery that out of these
figures, two companies were awarded contracts to the tune of N350,000,000.00,
$1,661,670,469.71 and €9,905,477.00 alone. This was without prejudice to the
consistent non-performance of the companies in the previous contracts awarded.”
Adesina in the statement added that the former NSA also
directed the Central Bank of Nigeria to transfer a certain amount to accounts
domiciled in the United Kingdom and the United States.
“Additionally, it was discovered that the former NSA
directed the Central Bank of Nigeria to transfer the sum of $132,050,486.97 and
€9,905,473.55 to the accounts of Societe D’equipmente Internationaux in West
Africa, United Kingdom and United States of America for un-ascertained
purposes, without any contract documents to explain the transactions.
“The findings made so far are extremely worrying
considering that the interventions were granted within the same period that our
troops fighting the insurgency in the North East were in desperate need of
platforms, military equipment and ammunition. Had the funds siphoned to these
non performing companies been properly used for the purpose they were meant
for, thousands of needless Nigerian deaths would have been avoided.
“Furthermore, the ridicule Nigeria has faced in the
international community would have been avoided. It is worrisome and
disappointing that those entrusted with the security of this great nation were
busy using proxies to siphon the national treasury, while innocent lives were
wasted daily.
“In light of these findings, President Muhammadu Buhari
has directed that the relevant organizations arrest and bring to book, all
individuals who have been found complicit in these illegal and fraudulent
acts”, the statement submitted.
Source:Vanguard
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