TheCable

Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo says the $1 billion recently approved from the excess crude account is not only meant for the Boko Haram war.

He said this on Tuesday at the secretary to the government of the federation/secretaries to state governments’ retreat holding in Abuja.

Osinbajo said the money is to “assist the security architecture of the country.”

“It was on account of the security summit that the governors at the governors’ forum subsequently decided that they would vote a certain sum of money, which has become somewhat controversial, the $1bn,” he said.

“It was to assist all of the issues in the states, including policing in the states, community policing, all of the different security challenges that we have.

“It was after the security summit that the governors’ forum met across party lines in order to approve and to accept that this is what needed to be done to shore up our security architecture.”

Osinbajo’s claim, however, contradicts that of Godwin Obaseki, governor of Edo state, who announced the approval for the withdrawal of the money last week.

While speaking to state house correspondents after the national economic council meeting, Obasaki had said: “Pleased with the achievements that have been made till date in the fight against insurgency, particularly in the north-east, the governors of Nigeria through their chairman announced at the NEC meeting that the governors have given permission to the federal government to spend the sum of $1bn on the fight of insurgency.

The approval has been met with criticism from various quarters, most notably from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Ayo Fayose, Ekiti state governor, has said he was not involved in the approval granted by his colleagues and had also alleged it could be for the re-election of President Muhammadu Buhari.