The acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr Ibrahim Magu, has accused some state governors of feasting on public funds under the pretext of fighting insecurity.
Magu, who spoke on Wednesday during the induction programme for newly elected governors, lamented that some of the governors deliberately incite killings with the sole purpose of collecting more money as security vote from the federal government.
He said, “We have also seen evidence of theft of public resources by some state governors – cashing in on the insecurity in their states.
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“Insecurity has also offered the required oxygen for corruption to thrive as evident in the $2.1bn arms procurement scandal involving top military commanders both serving and retired.”
On corruption and insurgency, he argued, “Mass poverty in the region, due in part to corruption by the ruling elite, is largely to blame for the ease with which the Islamists are able to recruit fighters to sustain their aggression against the Nigerian state.”
“As an investigator, I am shocked by the quantum of resources stolen from the Niger Delta Development Commission by those who run the intervention agency. It is so bad that even a mere personal assistant to a former Managing Director was charged with stealing over N3bn,” he added.
Magu then admonished the governors to avoid stealing of public funds, saying, “Whether we like it or not, corruption and terrorism have become the twin evils, undermining our collective efforts to make Nigeria a truly great country.”