The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Security vote

  • Security vote helping to sustain corruption – Musa

    Former Kaduna State Governor, Alhaji Balarabe Musa, told Assistant Editor, Jide Babalola, that Security Vote is part of the corrupt practices by those in government. Excerpts

    WE had security vote in my time, minimal security vote is required by the state; for instance, in my time, we had only N100, 000 because the police and other security agencies were doing their work, even though there were challenges.

    “Indeed, all agencies involved with security, including the Army, which tackle subversive activities, were all doing their works appropriately at that time and they were being provided with relatively sufficient funds to carry out their statutory responsibilities.

    “Nevertheless, security vote was not a source of such huge expenditures as it is today; there is no justification for the billions that they are spending today, it is only part of the corrupt practices by those in government.

    “The people who really need what is being expended as security vote are the police and they are not being given; rather, the governors dish out the funds to themselves and all the people close to them.

    “Definitely, governors need security votes but very minimal and reasonable amount should be adequate because the police and other security agencies’ work is being hampered when they are not provided with sufficient funds.

    “Even though the governors are called Chief Security Officers, they don’t really need to have such funds; they cannot exercise such roles because they do not have the personnel, so why give them such monies?

    “It is only part of the system’s way of sustaining corruption now; when I was a governor, the security vote of N100, 000 was under the complete direction of the Secretary to the State Government, I did not know anything about the disbursement.

    “However, today, unrealistic amounts are in the hands of governors as security vote and some of them use it for the maintenance of their farms, private companies and the maintenance of their friends and families instead of using it to provide security,” Alhaji Balarabe Musa said.

  • ‘I’ll spend my security vote to feed Ekiti residents’

    ‘I’ll spend my security vote to feed Ekiti residents’

    A governorship aspirant of Mega Party of Nigeria (MPN) in Ekiti State, Senator Bode Olowoporoku, has promised to spend part of his security vote to feed the people, if elected in the July 14 election.

    Olowoporoku regretted that a massive hunger is afflicting Ekiti residents because of the alleged failure of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    The politician addressed reporters yesterday in his hometown, Ilawe-Ekiti, headquarters of Ekiti Southwest Local Government Area, during a sensitisation rally ahead of the governorship poll.

    The former Minister of Science and Technology promised to immediately address hunger by distributing 100 bags of rice to each of the 177 wards in the state every month for four years.

    To address hunger in a long term, Olowoporoku promised to launch Agriculture Revolution, which will enjoy a huge investment from government with the sole aim of firmly establishing commercial farming.

    The former Senate Committee Chairman on Agriculture said the commercial farming initiative would generate thousands of jobs, create cottage industries and generate revenue into government coffers.

    This, he said, are better ways to tackle hunger than “the three or four cups of rice given to people by Governor Ayo Fayose once in four years.

    Olowoporoku said: “What has he been using to win? Two or three cups of rice. But now, I am saying I will be giving them 100 bags of rice; every ward, every month.

    “Even if you are taking it from the central purse, in seven years, it is not up to what Fayose spent on his useless flyover to nowhere.

    “And this is the money you can get from the security vote and you use the money to feed the people because the state belongs to them.”

  • My security vote is to protect me from hoodlums – Edo Speaker

    My security vote is to protect me from hoodlums – Edo Speaker

    Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Hon Adjoto Kabiru, on Thursday said the security vote meant for his office was to ensure that he is not taken away like a chicken by hoodlums.

    Hon Adjoto who dismissed allegations that the House of Assembly got huge sums as security vote explained that only the office of Mr. Speaker is entitled to security vote.

    Speaking at an interactive session with Journalists in Benin City, the Edo Speaker said he used to security vote to take care of security personnel attached to his office.

    Adjoto who emerged Speaker in August said he would not be a dictator but provide leadership in consultation with other lawmakers.

    His words, “On the issue of security vote, Edo State House of Assembly does not have security vote as an institution and arm of government. It is only Mr. Speaker that has security vote that is why Mr Speaker is the number three in the state.

    “And if he is taken away like a chicken on the street, many people will then say did he not have security men around him?

    “So, I use the security vote to take care of the security men protecting Mr. Speaker in order for kidnappers and men of the underworld not to steal or whisking away or harming him.

    “In the course of discharging my duty as Mr. Speaker by moving from one community to another or criss-crossing the country, do you want me to go alone? No. So, some armed security men must go with me. And where do I pay them from? It is from Mr. Speaker security vote.

    “I will humble myself; see leadership as a collective enterprise. It is only when I am seeing myself as the man who knows it all, that is when I will fail as Speaker but if I see leadership as collective enterprise, I think that is when all the other 23 members will see me and respect me and to continue to see me as their Speaker.

    ” I will not be a dictator, I will not take a decision without consultation, I will see myself as servant leader and not superior to any of them”, he said

     

  • Ezeemo: I won’t collect security vote

    Ezeemo: I won’t collect security vote

    A governorship aspirant on the platform of the Progressive People’s Alliance (PPA), Mr. Ezeemo, has said that he will not collect security vote, if elected into office.

    He said in Awka, the state capital, that if elected as the governor that he would not collect the monthly security votes, describing it as stealing in disguise.

    Ezeemo said it was criminal for the governors not to account for such funds, adding that the deal was killing the country.

    The aspirant said he would dedicate such funds in his first year in office towards building stadia in the 21 local government areas of the state.

    He said no fewer than 2000 footballers would be churned out from the process.

    He spoke at a meeting organised by the Anambra Consensus Platform, a non-governmental organisation, led by Dr Emeka Eze.

    Ezeemo, wondered why a governor would pocket about 1.4 billion naira monthly as security vote.

    He said: “I won’t earn such money as governor because it’s against man and God. It’s robbery; it’s a grievous sin against the suffering masses in a time like this.

    “This is part of the things we’re coming in to change. Our government will have human face. God has blessed me enough that I won’t steal public funds for any reason. My long stay in London had given me enough experience to make things work differently better here in Anambra state”

    Other speakers include one of the aspirants from the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Chike Obidigbo and an aspirant from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Alex Obiogbolu.

    The group had commenced face-to-face interactive sessions with governorship aspirants in the state ahead of the November 18 poll.

    Eze, said the essence of the interaction was to provide an avenue where aspirants would be screened by the people.

     

  • Oke, Ibrahim clash over security vote

    Oke, Ibrahim clash over security vote

    •Akeredolu shuns debate

    Candidate of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) Olusola Oke and his People’s Democratic Party (PDP) counterpart Jimoh Ibrahim yesterday disagreed on the use of security votes by governors.
    The duo and Olu Agunloye of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) spoke at a debate jointly organised by Channels Television, Enough Is Enough (EIE), and Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC) for the Ondo State governorship candidates ahead of Saturday’s election.
    All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate Rotimi Akeredolu did not show up.
    The Akeredolu Campaign Platform said he was “tucked in the deep riverine communities.”
    Ibrahim described security vote as a fraud, saying he would not spend government funds to protect himself while his people remained vulnerable.
    But Oke said it would not be abolished, adding that he would retain the fund, but reduce the amount.
    The AD candidate promised to be transparent and accountable in the administration of the security votes.
    “There are things the governor does on security that cannot go through the bureaucracy,” he said.
    On tax, Agunloye said the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) being collected means extorting money from citizens in form of taxes without providing services.
    He promised to ensure that the government provided services that would generate revenue.
    Agunloye described the recession in Ondo State as a result of corruption. “We have no business with recession,” he added
    Ibrahim vowed to eradicate all forms of taxes.
    “You don’t take money from workers who are owned salaries for several months. We are going to eliminate personal income tax,” he said.
    Oke assured that in three months, citizens would begin to see changes in the economy adding that personal income tax “is statutory.”
    Ibrahim promised to provide employment, saying it would take just three days to create a company.
    “The government has no business privatising companies in Ondo a State,” he said.
    Agunloye said he would pay backlog of salaries in the first few months of taking over office. He added that his government would make the welfare of the people a priority.
    Oke said decried unemployment in the state, saying it has assumed an “epidemic” proportion.

  • Akeredolu urges govs to cut security vote

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirant in Ondo State, Mr. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, has called for the reduction of the controversial security vote as part of strategies to manage fiscal crisis, which many states were facing.

    Akeredolu, former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), said the governors should halt reckless spending, lamenting that they “spend too much on frivolity.”

    In a statement, he said managing a state at a turbulent time “requires the service of a man, who has vision and who can see beyond today.”

    The aspirant acknowledged that 27 states could no longer pay salaries, adding that governors should be creative and make sacrifices.

    Akeredolu said governors should “to manage the affairs of the state within the resources it has and cut some spending to stabilise the economy.”

    He said: “There are many things in terms of security vote. There are many things in terms of reckless spending. Some governors still go out with a number of entourage. What do you need it for when we are in a state of crisis? The problem we have is that we spend too much on frivolity.”

    But he said the chief executives of most states of the federation “have refused to cut their spending. If this crisis gets worse, what stops a governor from buying his food in the Government House?

    “At least, you are able to feed yourself in your house. Why can you not feed yourself in Government House? Till tomorrow, President Barack Obama pays for his food in the White House? The one the United States Government takes care of is the state banquet,” he said.

    Akeredolu urged the governors “to cut off all these excesses”, adding: “It does not have to continue this way. If it is a crisis period, you must call your people to prepare to make sacrifice so that we can move forward.”

    He added: “We have not prioritise in respect of what we need to do. We are not looking at agriculture properly.

    “There must be a way that if anybody that comes to the Government House, the only rice you can eat there is ofada. We get to point we eat pounded yam or amala.”

  • Govs must use security votes to get information – Anenih

    Govs must use security votes to get information – Anenih

    The Chairman, Board of Trustee (BoT) of the Peoples Democratic Party, Chief Anthony Anenih, has called on governors to use their security votes to gather information that will help curb the country’s security challenges.

    Addressing a meeting of the PDP Governors’ Forum in Abuja, Anenih said that using the fund was necessary, as the Federal Government alone could not guarantee security in the country.

    “All of you are chief security officers of your states, the Federal Government alone cannot give all Nigerians security and everybody must be involved.

    “The market women, governors, members of the National Assembly and councillors must all be involved.

    “Most of those who destroy houses and kill people live with us and police cannot perform miracle without information.

    “Getting information now is very expensive so I appeal to the governors that this is the time to use your security votes to seek information. Nobody will blame you for that,’’ the News Agency of Nigeria quoted Chief Anenih as saying at the meeting.

    The BoT chairman also stressed the need for members of the party to reconcile their differences.

    He said, “If anybody says that PDP is not on ground, he must be telling lies. The problem PDP has is the inability to reconcile.

    “I want to appeal to all of you here present and through you to others that are not here that Nigerians want a change.

    “They want reconciliation; they want to see that it is well with us. We must be ready to reconcile ourselves and avoid those things that tend to divide us.”

    Chief Anenih said that all that was needed to move the party and the country forward was unity, sincerity, commitment and loyalty of all members.