Niger gov asks Aliyu to refund N2.9bn

Babangida Aliyu

The Niger State Government has asked former Governor Babangida Aliyu to refund N2.9bn

A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the state Governor, Dr. Ibrahim Dooba, indicated that the money was taken as loan on the eve of Aliyu’s departure.

It stated that although the new administration of Governor Abubakar Bello was not on a witch-hunt, “the misappropriated money belongs to the people and should be returned.”

It added, “They took this loan on the eve of their departure. And as was customary with that administration, they did nothing with the money.

“You can’t collect a loan on behalf of the people and share it among yourselves. That’s literally what they did. They simply raised a list and allocated money to those on the list.

‘’The office of the SSG for example, was given N600m. The records did not say what he would do with the money. Well, we want our money back. The money belongs to the people.”

The statement added that the present administration had prioritised the needs of the people, stressing that such looted but recovered funds would be expended on projects.