- As Jonathan comes under attack for saying Dasuki didn’t steal $2.1bn
Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, yesterday, told the Senate that the Federal Government would sustain its over N6trillion national budget in the 2017 appropriation bill, expected to be submitted by President Muhammadu Buhari, after the consideration and subsequent approval of the pending 2017—2019 Medium Term Expenditure Framework, MTEF and Fiscal Strategy Paper, FSP, by the National Assembly.
Adeosun told members of the Senate Committee on Finance, led by its Chairman, John Owan Enoh, PDP, Cross River Central, who were on oversight visit to her ministry that government would maintain its over N6trillion annual budget because it spends over N3 trillion out of the budget sum for salaries, pension and debt services , leaving a paltry amount for capital projects.
She insisted that the country would be gambling with the figure for now as it can’t go below it anymore in the face of high expectations from its citizens.
Senator Enoh had told the minister that the committee’s visit was “actually driven by the collective decision of the Senate a few weeks ago that all its standing committees embarked on oversight visits to all ministries, departments and agencies of government.’”
“So, for us as a committee, in addition to having to respond to that requirement, it also became imperative that we embark on this maiden visit.
“Our hope is that on this visit, the minister, quite apart from giving us some highlights of the implementation of the Ministry of Finance budget in the year 2016,would also throw some highlights on few of some of the things that she feels the committee should know, especially the performance of our economy, no matter how briefly, and some things that we could take advantage of because we oversight her ministry, so that we don’t just hear as secondhand but hear as firsthand.
“This is October, the Medium Term Expenditure Framework is already sent to the National Assembly for approval so that the 2017 budget can come. We have a few revenue challenges, most of all is the performance of the independent revenue of government. So we think that the minister would take advantage of this meeting and be able to bring us to speed with a few of these things, “he added. The Committee berated the minister for what it described as her poor handling of agencies under her watch, resulting in monumental leakage and loopholes. ”
There are a lot of drained pipes and leakages in the customs, I don’t think that the ministry under your watch has given sufficient attention to the customs in particular, “Senator Hope Uzodinma, a member of the committee and Chairman, Senate Committee on Customs told her.
Responding, Mrs Adeosun disclosed that government’s efforts at realising money from revenue generating agencies to meet the expectations of Nigerians were being hampered by high-level corruption still existing in the agencies, especially the Nigerian Customs Service, which she described its men as “cohesive crooks hard to break.”
To this end, she solicited an urgent intervention of the National Assembly in curbing the loopholes and excessive leakage not only in the revenue sourcing agencies but also all other Federal Government’s agencies, saying they were stinking of corruption.
In the meantime, condemnation on Tuesday greeted the comments by former President Goodluck Jonathan that a former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd,), did not steal $2.1bn contrary to the accusation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, currently prosecuting the ex-NSA.
Jonathan had stated that it was inconceivable to say that Dasuki stole $2.2bn, contending that his government, where Dasuki served as the NSA, bought warships, aircraft and a lot of equipment for the military during the period.
Dasuki, who has been in detention since mid-2015, is being prosecuted by the EFCC for alleged diversion of arms fund, totalling $2.1bn.
Jonathan argued that it would not be right to say that $2.2bn was stolen with the equipment and arms bought by his administration when he delivered a lecture on Youth Entrepreneurship at the Oxford Union in the United Kingdom on Tuesday.
Jonathan, in a statement by an Abuja-based public relations outfit, the PR Nigeria, said he had kept quiet to allow the court to handle the ongoing prosecution of the former NSA so as not to be seen as a former President challenging a sitting administration.
But the Presidency called on Jonathan to allow the court to decide the fate of his former NSA.
When asked to react to the comment, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, said the courts should be allowed to decide the matter which he said was subjudice.
“The matter is subjudice. Let the courts decide,” the presidential spokesman said.
The All Progressives Congress and the Senator Ali Modu Sheriff led faction of the PDP, a party the ex-President belongs to, also asked him to allow the court to do its job in the trial of Dasuki and other suspects, accused of benefiting from the arms cash diversion.
The former President admitted that while it was true that there were some corruption cases during his administration, some of the cases were exaggerated.
Jonathan said, “They said the National Security Adviser (Sambo Dasuki) stole $2.2bn. I don’t believe somebody can just steal $2.2 billion.
‘‘We bought warships, we bought aircraft, we bought lots of weapons for the Army and so on and so forth and you are still saying $2.2bn (was stolen). So, where did we get the money to buy all those things?
“One thing about the issue of corruption is that these matters are in court. Let’s allow some of these processes to end. Lately, some judges’ homes were also invaded. There are so many things involved and we have to follow up these matters to conclusion before we know the fact.
“Yes, there were some issues. Yes, there are still corruption issues but some of it were over blown; I would say exaggerated, and they give a very bad impression about our nation. You cannot say the national security adviser stole $2.2bn. It is not just possible.”
Condemnation on Tuesday greeted the comments by former President Goodluck Jonathan that a former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd,), did not steal $2.1bn contrary to the accusation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, currently prosecuting the ex-NSA.
Jonathan had stated that it was inconceivable to say that Dasuki stole $2.2bn, contending that his government, where Dasuki served as the NSA, bought warships, aircraft and a lot of equipment for the military during the period.
Dasuki, who has been in detention since mid-2015, is being prosecuted by the EFCC for alleged diversion of arms fund, totalling $2.1bn.
Jonathan argued that it would not be right to say that $2.2bn was stolen with the equipment and arms bought by his administration when he delivered a lecture on Youth Entrepreneurship at the Oxford Union in the United Kingdom on Tuesday.
Jonathan, in a statement by an Abuja-based public relations outfit, the PR Nigeria, said he had kept quiet to allow the court to handle the ongoing prosecution of the former NSA so as not to be seen as a former President challenging a sitting administration.
But the Presidency called on Jonathan to allow the court to decide the fate of his former NSA.
When asked to react to the comment, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, said the courts should be allowed to decide the matter which he said was subjudice.
“The matter is subjudice. Let the courts decide,” the presidential spokesman said.
The All Progressives Congress and the Senator Ali Modu Sheriff led faction of the PDP, a party the ex-President belongs to, also asked him to allow the court to do its job in the trial of Dasuki and other suspects, accused of benefiting from the arms cash diversion.
The former President admitted that while it was true that there were some corruption cases during his administration, some of the cases were exaggerated.
Jonathan said, “They said the National Security Adviser (Sambo Dasuki) stole $2.2bn. I don’t believe somebody can just steal $2.2 billion.
‘‘We bought warships, we bought aircraft, we bought lots of weapons for the Army and so on and so forth and you are still saying $2.2bn (was stolen). So, where did we get the money to buy all those things?
“One thing about the issue of corruption is that these matters are in court. Let’s allow some of these processes to end. Lately, some judges’ homes were also invaded. There are so many things involved and we have to follow up these matters to conclusion before we know the fact.
“Yes, there were some issues. Yes, there are still corruption issues but some of it were over blown; I would say exaggerated, and they give a very bad impression about our nation. You cannot say the national security adviser stole $2.2bn. It is not just possible.”
Vanguard with additional report from Punch
