As part of its commitment to assist Nigeria in her war against the terrorist insurgency, the UK government has committed to spending £860m to the country. According to The Telegraph, however, some of this money is now being used to persecute political opponents as part of the government's war against corruption.
Since President Buhari assumed power in May last year, a number of prominent members of the former ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) have been arrested and charged with corruption. President Buhari has made fighting corruption the main focus of his regime and the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC), has been actively hunting down looted funds.
Despite the gravity of its allegations, The Telegraph did not provide any statistics to back up its claims. All the indications so far are that the Nigerian military is enjoying significant success in the fight against Boko Haram, partly due to the war against corruption that has resulted in arms and equipment going to troops on the front line.
During the previous administration, funds earmarked for the purchase of military hardware found their way into private pockets. This resulted in the launch of a £2.1bn probe by the EFCC to recover the money and several PDP members and former military officials are currently facing court action as a result.
Popularly known as The Torygraph for its rightwing and conservative views, The Telegraph has been a strong backer of British prime minister David Cameron. It has also been fiercely opposed to the UK spending any money on foreign aid and wants to see the country pull out of the European Union.
Comments
Post a Comment