Nigeria’s minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed has revealed that 21 people benefited from the arms deal money which was allegedly distributed Sambo Dasuki, former national security adviser (NSA).
The Minister made the disclosure at a meeting with online media publishers in Lagos.
“Some have said the government is dwelling too much on the war against corruption to the detriment of other areas of governance. Our response to that is that indeed, there is nothing like dwelling too much on this war, which is a war of survival for our nation”, Mr Mohammed told the publishers.
”The situation is grim, very grim indeed, as far as corruption is concerned. That is why the federal government is embarking on this sensitisation campaign our approach is not to vilify anyone but to use facts and figures to give Nigerians a sense of the cost of corruption.”
”The amount received by 21 individuals and companies from ONSA is more than the 2015 zonal intervention project budget by N2.829bn. Whereas the sum of N51.829bn was appropriated for 1,278 projects in the zonal intervention projects for 2015, a total of 21 individuals and companies benefited from the Dasukigate to the tune of N54.659bn as we know so far”.
”The implication, therefore, is that the amount received by 21 individuals and companies is more than the 2015 zonal intervention project budget by N2.829bn. Furthermore, the value of what beneficiaries of Dasukigate contributed to development is zero, compared to how the lives of Nigerians would have been transformed, poverty reduced and livelihoods improved by the zonal intervention projects which would have cost N2.829bn less than Dasukigate”.
