Buratai Rejects ‘Malicious’ Claims Over $1bn Arms Fund, Points to Defence Ministry

Buratai denies handling $1bn defence procurement funds, asks ministry to account for spending

Former Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai (retd.), has dismissed allegations that he personally controlled or benefited from the $1 billion approved for defence procurement during his tenure, asserting that the funds were released to the Ministry of Defence.

The former boss of the Nigerian Army said the money approved for procurement was done through the National Economic Council (NEC) and never passed through his office or the accounts of the Army, Navy or Air Force.

Funds under ministry control

Speaking at the Defence Correspondents Association of Nigeria conference in Abuja on Monday, Buratai said the entire procurement process was handled by the Ministry of Defence and not the service arms.

“The $1 billion was approved by the National Economic Council for defence procurement. Not a single dollar of that fund passed through my hands or through the accounts of Nigerian Army, Navy or Air Force. The funds were released to the Ministry of Defence and the entire procurement process was handled by that ministry.”

Buratai said the Army, Navy and Air Force never received the allocation for procurement while the responsibility for explaining how the money was spent rests with the ministry that managed it.

Allegations ‘political and malicious’

Buratai said the corruption allegations raised against him are “political and malicious”, adding that it started when the accusations were initially made during the 2019 election cycle by the opposition that the funds were being diverted for electoral purposes.

He said the federal government publicly refuted the claim at the time but lamented that the controversy was always attached to the savings rather than the institution that managed them.

The former Chief of Army Staff faulted the media for not diligently pursuing why the Ministry of Defence under the previous administration did not publicly explain how the funds were utilised.

Background to the controversy:

The dispute around the $1 billion is about the money withdrawn from the Excess Crude Account (ECA) for security reasons during the Buhari administration. In 2019, TheCable reported that the presidency said the funds were not released to the Ministry of Defence but were domiciled in the accounts of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The National Assembly had approved the request of President Muhammadu Buhari for the withdrawal in 2018 to fund the purchase of weapons in the fight against insurgency. The presidency would later say procurements were made on behalf of the Army, Navy and Air Force, including a $496 million government-to-government payment for 12 Super Tucano aircraft for the Air Force.

Buratai’s latest comments have intensified calls for the Ministry of Defence to publicly give a detailed account of the procurement records, contract awards and disbursement of the $1 billion fund.

Source: https://www.thecable.ng/