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Nigerian Government Claims It Didn't Doctor Military Probe Report To Spare Interior Minister Dambazau

Nigeria’s Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, today issued another statement denying that the Federal government had doctored a report of the Presidential Committee On Audit of Defense Equipment Procurement. An investigative report by us had revealed yesterday that officials of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration had altered aspects of the presidential committee’s report in order to remove the name of Nigeria’s current Internal Affairs Minister, Lieutenant-General Abdulrahman Dambazau (ret.), from a list of security personnel implicated in acts of embezzlement of public funds.

SaharaReporters stands by its report.

In a statement issued by a ministerial aide, Segun Adeyemi, the Information Minister claimed that what has been released so far was the report of the audit covering the period 2011 to 2015, adding that the Committee would commence the audit of procurement from 2007 to 2010 as soon as the necessary documents were available.“When the documents regarding procurement from 2007 to 2010 are available and scrutinized, the committee will then issue its report on that. The audit is being done [in] phases, and the report that was released on Thursday is the third of such,” the Minister said.

Mr. Mohammed’s statement also declared that the government’s anti-corruption policy was non-discriminatory, urging Nigerians to keep an open mind.

However, our military and Presidency sources punched holes in Mr. Mohammed’s claim that the report of the presidential committee that investigated military procurement contracts had not covered the period Mr. Dambazau was Chief of Army Staff (COAS) between 2007-2010. They noted that the presidential committee’s report issued yesterday included some questionable equipment procurement deals struck during the period of Mr. Dambazau’s appointment as Chief of Army Staff. In addition, the committee’s report did not indicate that another interim report was being awaited.

A source within the Presidency confirmed that yesterday’s report indeed covered the tenure of the controversial Mr. Dambazau as COAS. “Alhaji Lai Mohammed claim that the investigation did not cover 2007-2010 is not true,” the source stated, adding that the minister’s claim was a desperate effort to cover the embarrassment that Mr. Dambazau’s name had been excluded.

Our source, who is quite knowledgeable about the committee’s report, validated our assertion that the probe panel’s report released yesterday had been badly doctored. “The committee has clearly concluded its work. And they indicted Dambazau,” our source said.

The source also told SaharaReporters that the presidential committee discovered that, as COAS, Mr. Dambazau embezzled at least N1 billion from soldiers’ salaries. In addition, the committee also reportedly accused the retired Army general of buying a property in Boston, which he hurriedly transferred to his wife as the probe zeroed in on his financial deals.

Our source also noted that the presidential committee had included the name of one Maisudan Bello Mohammed who is CEO Dalfam Nigeria Limited. “Alhaji Maisudan is an in-law of General Dambazau and carried out some defense contracts funneled to him by General Dambazau,” our source said.

Below is the text of Mr. Lai Mohammed’s press release:

Arms Scandal Report Not Doctored - FG

The Federal Government has said there is no truth in the insinuation that the report of the Presidential Committee on the Audit of Defense Equipment Procurement in the Armed Forces (2007-2015) was doctored for whatever reason.In a statement issued in Abuja on Friday, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said what has been released so far is the report of the audit covering the period 2011 to 2015, adding that the Committee would commence the audit of procurement from 2007 to 2010 as soon as the necessary documents are available.

“When the documents regarding procurement from 2007 to 2010 are available and scrutinized, the committee will then issue its report on that. The audit is being done on phases, and the report that was released on Thursday is the third of such,” the Minister said.

He assured that the Federal Government's anti-corruption fight is non-discriminatory, and called on Nigerians to keep an open mind as events unfold.

“No one should attempt to distract from the seriousness of the issues involved in this audit of defense equipment procurement. It is important to note that even though the total amount spent for procurement and operations within the period were N185,843,052,564.30 and $685,349,692.49, the irregularities in the awards ensured that the military did not get value for money, with very serious consequences,” the Minister said.

Signed by

Segun Adeyemi
Special Assistant to Minister of Information and Culture

Abuja

July 15th 2016

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