The New Peoples Democratic Party (nPDP) has challenged the Federal Government to account for the $5bn alleged to have disappeared from the nation’s Excess Crude Account (ECA).
The party threw the challenge after a careful study of the disclosure made by Chairman, Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi while declaring open the second annual retreat of the NGF on Friday in Sokoto. Amaechi had said that the Excess Crude Account stood at $9bn last January but has shrunk to only $4bn as at now.
“We consider this development too weighty to be swept under the carpet in view of the stature of the person making the allegation and the realities on ground. For all intents and purposes, Gov. Amaechi is not a frivolous person and is not known for making frivolous claims”, National Publicity Secretary of nPDP, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze wrote in a statement.
“We told Nigerians about the poor handling of our common patrimony by this administration and sadly nobody took it seriously. As at today, the unmistakable evidence is that Nigeria is broke, as the Federal Government now finds it difficult to meet its obligations to states, local governments and contractors.
“We wish to commend the NGF Chairman for bringing this matter to the open and hereby challenge the Federal Government to come to tell Nigerians what it did with the money. We also hereby challenge the anti-graft agencies to prove their relevance by unearthing the whereabouts of this huge sum of money”.
nPDP congratulated the NGF for a successful retreat and expressed full support for its call for transparency in the operations of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the need to develop a National Security Framework for the country.
“That this administration is running for a price award as the most corrupt administration in the annals of governance in Nigeria is not in doubt but we urge Nigerians to heed the advice of the NGF and stop being docile in the face of monumental impunity in the country. This, in reality, is the only way to rescue Nigeria from the path of doom”, it concluded.
