- 200 tonnes of dates donated by the Saudia Arabia to Nigerians were diverted and sold to Nigerians by government officials
- The discrepancy was noticed by the Saudi Arabia government who demanded for apology as the fruit were gifts and not meant to be sold
- The Nigerian government has since apologised to Saudi Arabia but those who diverted the fruit are yet to be prosecuted
The Nigeria government is yet to prosecute officials who allegedly diverted 200 tonnes donated to Nigerians by Saudi Arabia for profit purpose.
During the 2017 Ramadan fast, the government of Saudi Arabia had sent 200 tonnes of dates to Nigeria to be distributed freely to people displaced by Boko Haram as well as Muslims fasting during the period but the fruit was instead sold by Nigerian officials.
Although the Nigerian government has since apologised to its Saudi Arabia counterpart for the shameful act, Premium Times reports that none of the officials involved in diverting the fruit has been arrested or prosecuted.
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While reacting to the lack of action by the Nigerian government to prosecute the culprits, Lanre Suraj of the Civil Society Network Against Corruption said the act is a smear on the integrity of Nigeria.
He said: “It deprives other people that would need support of other international organisation and countries in future. Actually, the fight against corruption and corrupt practices are not actually limited between the Naira and Kobo, it is the abuse of office.
“The federal government must not only prosecute but investigate the outcome of the distribution and make the investigation, prosecution and sanction public of those who are connected.
“I don’t think it is a very difficult task to embark and achieve, if some of those dates were sold on the street of Abuja and Borno, then it is not only easy to arrest those who are selling it, but extract information from them.”
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NAIJ.com earlier reported that Saudi Arabia has donated $10 million (N3.6 billion) in cash, arms and relief material to tackle the humanitarian crisis in Nigeria.
The leader of the Saudi Arabian delegation announced the donation during a visit to the minister of defence, Mansur Dan-Ali, on Monday, March 5.
Nasir Bin Mutlak said the aid package which is in cash and military equipment was aimed at assisting the displaced persons in the northeast and other essential needs of the military.
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Source: Naija.ng