BY Fredrick Nwabufo
Former President Goodluck Jonathan, says Sambo Dasuki, former national security adviser (NSA), did not steal $2.2bn meant for the purchase of arms for the military.
Jonathan said this on Monday at the Oxford Union, United Kingdom, while responding to a question on the alleged misappropriation of arms funds by his government
“They said the national security adviser stole $2.2billion. I don’t believe somebody can just steal $2.2 billion,” he said.
“We bought warships, we bought aircraft, we bought lots of weapons for the army and so on and so forth, and you are still saying $2.2 bn [was stolen]? So where did we get the money to buy all those things?”
He said allegations of corruption against his government were blown out of proportion, but admitted that there some cases of the problem in his time.
“Yes, there were some issues; yes, there are still corruption issues; but some of it were blown, I’d say exaggerated, and they give a very bad impression about our nation. You cannot say the national security adviser stole $2.2billion. It is not just possible,” he said.
“One thing about the issue of corruption is that these matters are in court, let’s allow some of these processes to end. Lately some judges’ homes were also invaded. There are so many things involved and we have to follow up these matters to conclusion before we know the fact.
“I don’t want to be seen as a former president challenging what the sitting government is doing so I have decided to keep quiet for the court to look into them. You will see that it has become a major topic whenever there is a change of government.
“I am not saying there is no corruption in Nigeria, there is corruption. If you look at corruption there is almost no country that is free, the degree varies, the perception varies.
“Transparency International talks about the way corruption is being perceived in different economies, why do we talk about the way corruption is being perceived, it depends on the issue raised in the media every day.”
Dasuki, who has been in detention for months, is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for corruption.
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