The Chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF), Abdulaziz Yari has defended the decision of the National Economic Council (NEC) authorising the Federal Government to withdraw $1 billion from the nation’s Excess Crude Account (ECA) to fight insurgency in the North East.
The National Economic Council headed by the Vice President comprises all the state governors in the country.
But in a statement, Governor Ayo Fayose had distanced himself from the decision of the council, saying he was not at the meeting where the decision was taken.
The controversial governor had also queried the decision, wondering why the Federal Government needed such huge sum of money to fight an enemy that it said had been ‘technically defeated’.
Fayose had further alleged that, rather than use the funds to fight Boko Haram, President Muhammadu Buhari had earmarked it to prosecute the 2019 General Election which is less than two years away.
But in a swift rebuttal through a Saturday statement, Yari, who is the Governor of Zamfara State, said that Fayose’s statement was unfair to fellow governors on the council, adding that nobody prevented Fayose from attending the council meeting.
Yari further explained that since Fayose is a member of the body, absenteeism did not exonerate him from responsibility from NEC’s resolutions.