The National Security Adviser to the President, Major-General Babagana Monguno (retd.), has said funds meant for the purchase of arms to strengthen the country’s anti-terror war went missing under the leadership of the immediate past service chiefs.
The ex-service chiefs are Chief of Defence Staff, General Abayomi Olonisakin; Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai; Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok Ekwe Ibas; and Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar.
The NSA, in an interview with BBC Hausa on Friday, said, “No one knows what happened to the money but by God’s grace, the president will investigate to find out whether the money was spent and where the arms went”.
The NSA also added that the new service chiefs have not seen any of the arms that the funds were supposed to be used to procure.
The President, Muhammadu Buhari, had appointed Buratai, Olonisakin, Ibas and Abubakar in July 2015 but the Commander-In-Chief replaced them in January 2021 after a repeatedn clamour from Nigerians that he bringin new people in the country’s anti-terror war, especially against Boko Haram in Nigeria’s North-East region.
The new service chiefs are Major-General Leo Irabor as Chief of Defence Staff; Major-General I. Attahiru as Chief of Army Staff; Rear Admiral A.Z Gambo as Chief of Naval Staff; and Air-Vice Marshal I.O Amao as Chief of Air Staff.
The NSA had on Thursday at a State House Briefing in Aso Villa, Abuja, said the President has released a lot of funds for the military to purchase firepower and win the battle against insurgency.
Monguno had also said the Buhari-regime was not interested in dialogue with terrorists, bandits and other criminals as negotiation paints the government as weak and incapable.
The NSA, therefore, vowed that the military, headed by the new chiefs has what it takes to crush the enemies of the Nigerian state without the help of mercenaries.
