CNPP rejects Buhari’s approval of N1.14bn for purchase of vehicles for Niger Republic
August 5,2022
The Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) has rejected the approval of N1.4 billion for the purchase of 10 Toyota Land Cruiser jeeps for Niger Republic as confirmed by the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed
The CNPP said the approval came when Nigerian students were on strike over the inability of the federal government to meet the financial demands of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
The minister after the Federal Executive Council Meeting disclosed that President Buhari approved the purchase, submitting that the country has a policy of assisting its neighbours to strengthen its capacity to deal with insecurity
Willy Ezugwu, Secretary General of the group in a statement blasted the intentions of the President, asking, “How can Nigeria be fighting insecurity in another country while we are breeding insecurity at home by keeping energetic young Nigerians hopeless and idle for over five months due to ASUU strike?”
The group described the action as most insensitive to the continued suffering of Nigerian citizens who have not been able to have three square meals on the table in the last seven years of President Buhari’s administration.
It enjoined the National Assembly to waste no time in impeaching the President for funding a foreign country under the guise of improving her security logistics while failing to tackle insecurity at home, saying that the vehicles were not meant for security patrol vans but executive SUV jeeps
He said the six weeks ultimatum issued to Mr. President to tackle internal security should be immediate as the Senate must now reconvene as a matter of urgency to commence the impeachment proceedings without further delay.
The statement alleged that when a social media influencer, David Hundeyin, released a document claiming that the approval was made, most Nigerians dismissed it as social media rumour until the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, confirmed the purchase
The CNPP lamented that the Academic Staff Union of Universities declared a comprehensive and total strike on February 14, 2022, and the President approved cars for Niger on February 22, eight days after the indefinite strike.
It added that at the height of insecurity in the country, a contract to supply the 10 units of Toyota Land Cruisers was awarded while the Nigerian police lacked operational vehicles and other necessary equipment to carry out internal security operations.
The statement explained that presently, the military, which traditionally has no business with internal security has been drafted to deal with ordinary unarmed protesters when we have police units that were trained to manage riotous crowds civilly.
The statement opined that despite the harsh economic realities in Nigeria, the President is also funding the economic interests of the same foreign entity through the $1.96 billion 284km rail project connecting Kano in Nigeria to Maradi in the Niger Republic.
The CNPP, therefore, called on all Nigerians to take note of the level of insensitivity and maladministration of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) federal government and do the needful in 2023 as the country cannot survive another eight years of an APC government from next year
