The Presidency has disclosed that the administration of former President, Goodluck Jonathan, spent N65 billion on travels in one year, whereas it spent only N18 billion on roads across the country in the same period.
The Presidency, further alleged that the Jonathan administration left N67 billion debt on fertilizer procurement alone.
Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, who made the allegations on Tuesday, September 13, during a session with newsmen at his Oro residence, in Irepodun Local Government Area of Kwara State, also lamented that Nigeria has so far lost about $1 billion to the new wave of insurgency in the oil-rich Niger Delta.
Mohammed, said it was such revelations that fueled the war against corruption in the country.
He noted, that the Buhari administration’s efforts to correct the misdeeds of the past government could not be felt immediately, because the rots in the system were too colossal for short term solutions.
The Minister said that the Federal Government should not be castigated for its anti-corruption crusade being perceived as against members of the opposition, pointing out that the probe at present is about those linked with the diversion of funds meant for procurement of arms.
He said: “People say we should not talk about what happened yesterday, but it is pertinent to learn, understand, and move away from past mistakes. In the whole of 2014, the government then expended about N18 billion on roads, but spent N65 billion on travels.“This year alone, we have spent N70 billion on roads. People say why are these steps not being felt immediately; it is because the last government refused to pay contractors between 2012 and 2015, even when crude was selling at $100 per barrel. Out of the N70 billion being owed Julius Berger, we have paid N14 billion. If government was not owing Julius Berger in the past, and we paid N14 billion to them, you would have seen them busy on the roads.”
On the $34.1 million frozen in the accounts linked to former First Lady, Mrs. Patience Jonathan, the Minister stated that the probe was not initiated by the government. According to him, “Those being prosecuted today are being prosecuted for what reason?
“The answer is obvious; it is about what happened to the funds allocated to fight Boko Haram.“As at that time, 14 out of 20 Local Governments were under the control of the insurgents. We were all wondering what could be happening to our gallant military men, who had excelled outside the country helping others, but could not defend our territorial boundaries.
“In the process, the Pandora box was opened. So, it is only the budget voted for “Defence” that is being investigated.
“So it is not about going out to investigate members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) or Mrs. Patience Jonathan. In her case, she was the one who came out when her Aides, or those of her husband were being investigated.“We salute the courage and perseverance of Nigerians. We know what they are going through. It is not about trading blames; it is about those who used this or that. We had for long the economy centered around one commodity.“Our dependence on oil formed over 60 per cent of our Gross Domestic Products (GDP). When the oil price crashed, we had no reserves to cushion the effects. We did not invest in infrastructure.“Although people said we should stop talking about the past, we believe that proper accounts must be made.”
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