Posted on: 11:08 Fri, 11 Mar 2016



Fresh revelations emanating from the
Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC) have it that ex-
president Goodluck Jonathan spent
about N2.2billion on prayers to fight
Boko Haram.

The Nation gathered from an
executive director of the Nigerian
National Petroleum Corporation
(NNPC), Aminu Baba-Kusa, that the
money was spent on prayers in
Nigeria and Saudi Arabia to win
the war against insurgency in the
country.

This latest development is not part
of the $2.1billion arms fund for
which former National Security
Adviser (NSA) Colonel Sambo
Dasuki is being tried.

The monies for the prayer, it was
gathered, was disbursed through
the Office of the National Security
Adviser (ONSA), as proposed by
Baba-Kusa.

Making this revelation was Baba-
Kusa himself, in a statement of
witness filed in the high court of
the Federal Capital Territory (FCT),
where he, Dasuki and three others
(Acacia Holdings Limited and
Reliance Referral Hospital Limited
(owned by Baba-Kusa) and a
former director of finance in ONSA,
Shuaibu Salisu) are facing trials.

The NNPC director confessed that
the money was spent on prayers to
hasten the defeat of the insurgents,
and that it was released in two
tranches of N1,450,000,000 and
N750,000,000, adding that the
proposal was verbal.

“I approached the former NSA
and discussed Boko Haram
problems and I suggested there is
need for prayers and he
considered and accepted in 2013
when he first came to office.

“I personally sponsored many
people locally and some few to
Saudi Arabia. Some monies were
later paid into our companies,
which we paid to some of the
mallams.

“I then arranged to recover my
personal expense which I put into
our own businesses.

“We have been spending a lot
from our businesses and personal
accounts. Money paid through
UBA, First Bank and ECOBANK.

For Acacia Holdings Limited(A/C
1017330319-UBA); ECOBANK
(0122012650); and First Bank
(Reliance Referral Hospitals
Limited A/C 2022394057). The
total amount is N2,200,000,000
from October 2014 to April 2015,”
Baba-Kusa confessed.

According to him, he may not be an
expert,
“but I used some of the mallams
to organise in Abuja, Zaria, Kano,
Sokoto, Maiduguri, Kaduna and
Saudi Arabia covering 2013 to
2015.

“I give them funds as required
from time to time, ranging from
N500,000 to N30million,
depending on their needs,
traveling, sadaqat and others for
local expenses and travels to
Saudi Arabia for Umrah and Hajj.

“I reminded the NSA many times
before payments were made. We
grew up together with the former
NSA with common friends in
ABU.

“Most of the payments in cash
were meant to give out cash to
people that have been organising
prayers. Some transfers to Acacia
to other banks were for logistics
and also to some mallams in
cash.”

On how the prayer contract was
arrived at, the suspect said: “The
proposal made to the former NSA
was not documented by him or
myself. The verbal proposal to him
was for prayers to overcome Boko
Haram within the shortest possible
time.

“The engagement for prayers by
organising some people to be
praying was not formally written
down.

“There was no amount of money
agreed on. I said to him, I will
start organising, which he agreed
and said he will see what he
would give at a later time.”

Baba-Kusa, who noted that he spent
an estimate of over N700million
from his own resources before
asking for money from the ONSA,
noted further that “some of these
funds came from disposal of some
of my land in Abuja. One in
Maitama, one in Gudu and one in
Guzape. The Maitama was a little
over N200million; Guzape (N80m),
Gudu(N18m).”

He added that he kept no records of
the money he handed over to the
various people they used, but
assured the EFCC that he would
refund the said cash if he is able to
dispose off his landed properties.

“I am making efforts to dispose of
my properties in Abuja which
would be over the total amount of
N2.2billion. If the sales go
through and the amount from the
sales is made in full, I will make
full payment.” he was quoted to
have said.

The 19 charges against the five
suspects read that, Baba-Kusa,
Acacia Holdings Limited and
Reliance Referral Hospital Limited
are alleged to have “between
October 2014 and April 2015 in
Abuja agreed to do an illegal act to
wit: dishonestly receiving property
to wit: an aggregate sum of
N2,200,000,000 being part of the
funds in the accounts of the Office
of National Security Adviser and
that the same act was fine in
pursuance of the agreement among
you and you thereby committed an
offence punishable under Section
97 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532,
Vol.4, LFN 2004.”

Source:- Naij