Fight Against Boko Haram Now A Business Venture – Fayose
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Loading ...Ekiti State Governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose has alleged that Boko Haram
has become source of indirect treasury looting; saying “Those
benefitting from Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) scams, payment of
ransom (in dollars) to free those abducted by the Boko Haram
insurgents, among others will never wish to see the end of the
insurgency.”
The governor described the alleged withdrawal of military check-points
from Dapchi and other communities, few days before 110 students of
Government Girls Science Technical College (GGSTC) were abducted by
Boko Haram, as major pointer to possible conspiracy in the abduction
of the school girls and other dastardly acts of the insurgents, asking
why no one had been questioned up till now despite conflicting claims
by the army and police.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, by his Special Assistant on Public
Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, Governor Fayose insisted
that withdrawal of $1 billion from the Excess Crude Account by the
federal government was a continuation of the use of fight against the
insurgents to fleece the country.
He lamented that Nigerians were now getting to a state of helplessness
on the insurgency; adding that “Painfully, it appears we will have to
live with Boko Haram for a very long time because waiting for this
President Muhammadu Buhari led federal government to save Nigerians is
a waste of time. They boasted that Boko Haram will be defeated within
three months; it is now more than 30 months. All that they have told
Nigerians is grammar. Boko Haram technically defeated, Boko Haram
completely defeated and now Boko Haram completely degraded. ”
The governor said; “We have heard stories of alleged diversion of
foods and relief materials meant for the Internally Displaced Persons
(IDPs) in the North-East to Chad and Niger Republic, about 200 tons of
dates donated by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for distribution to the
IDPs sold in the open market in Abuja and most importantly, use of the
IDPs camps by top government officials to perpetrate monumental fraud.
As long as fight against Boko Haram remains a business venture,
providing cheap money for top officials of this government, the
insurgency will continue.
“The anti-corruption watchdog, Transparency International said last
year that corruption in the military was weakening Nigeria’s efforts
to battle Boko Haram.
“In Transparency International’s words; ‘corrupt military officials
have been able to benefit from the conflict through the creation of
fake defense contracts, the proceeds of which are often laundered
abroad in the UK, U.S. and elsewhere.’
“In its own report, the US Department of State’s Bureau for
Counterterrorism and Countering Violent Extremism said that the
inability of security agencies in Nigeria to share intelligence report
because of animosity is affecting the success in the fight against
Boko Haram.
“The public disagreement between the army and police over the security
arrangements that were in place in Dapchi and other communities in
Yobe State a few days before the Boko Haram attack that led to the
abduction of the 110 girls has further lend credence to the position
of the US Department of State’s Bureau for Counterterrorism and
Countering Violent Extremism.
“President Buhari must therefore have to look inward and purge his
government of those benefitting from the insurgency is indeed he
desires that it should end.”
