Press Statement
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says the revelation of over N48
billion fraud in the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has,
again, exposed the monstrous corruption, sleaze and cover-ups going on
in the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.
The party says the confession by the queried former Permanent Secretary
of the ministry, Dr. Umar Bello, that the duplicitous purchase of an
ordinary carcass building for a humongous cost of N7.044 billion passed
through the Federal Executive Council (FEC) further exposes the rot that
has permeated the Buhari administration.
The PDP holds that such revelation has again shown how the corrupt cabal
in the Buhari Presidency and the All Progressives Congress (APC) have
been pillaging our national treasury and fleecing our nation of billions
of naira through fraudulent transactions in various ministries,
departments and agencies, while parading before Nigerians as saints.
Nigerians were shocked by reports of how funds meant to service the food
security system in our country is being plundered by those in power,
resulting in the crippling of our agricultural sector thereby creating
attendant hunger and starvation in our land.
The PDP described as shameful that the FEC, under President Buhari’s
watch, is being fingered in financial manipulations and procurement
sleazes in the Agric ministry including the alleged disappearance of N48
billion contractors’ fund, over N7billion duplicated payments, diversion
of N9.1billion worth of drilling rigs to unnamed private individuals,
purchase of carcass building for N7.044 billion, in addition to
misapplication of billions of naira meant for strategic grains, rural
grazing area settlement funds and other food production intervention
schemes.
The fraud in the Ministry of Agriculture has further exposed how
officials of the Buhari administration and corrupt APC leaders have
turned government ministries and agencies into their Automated Teller
Machine (ATM) just as the case of exposed looting of billions of naira
in the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), the Federal Inland
Revenue Services (FIRS), National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA)
among others.
It is even more distressing that the corrupt cabal continues to enjoy
official cover while, in some cases, allowed to sacrifice their fronts
to conceal their tracks.
The PDP therefore rejects this attempt at cheap scapegoatism and demands
that the Buhari Presidency should immediately speak out and conduct an
open investigation that will expose all those involved in this huge scam
in the Ministry of Agriculture as well as recover the stolen funds.
Moreover, the PDP calls on the National Assembly as well as the Economic
and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to immediately commence
investigation into the behemoth of fraud in the Federal Ministry of
Agriculture and Rural Development.
Signed:
Kola Ologbondiyan
National Publicity Secretary
