October 3, 2014
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- Nigeria News
A Diaspora association, the Nigeria Unite Group, has petitioned the Secretary-General of the United Nations over the $9.3m seized by the South African government from two Nigerians and one Israeli after the three men landed the country in a private jet.
The Federal Government claimed the money was meant to procure arms with which to fight insurgency. However, the group insisted that the incident smacked off criminality and foul play.
A copy of the petition dated September 25, 2014, and co-signed by Dr. Mohammed Hussaini and Francis John from the international secretariat of the group, averred that the arms deal was a total violation of the principles enshrined in the global Arms Trade Treaty.
The petition read in part, “Although the government has admitted knowledge of the deal, it has denied any complicity in the attempt to commit a crime.
“However, in court papers, the National Prosecuting Authority of South Africa submitted evidence that Tier One-the company that Nigeria claimed to have an arms import deal with is not registered with the National Conventional Arms Control Committee, and is thus, not authorised to enter into any agreement regarding the sale and/or rental military equipment.
“This is a total violation of the principles enshrined in the global Arms Trade Treaty. Moreover, the explanations given by the two Nigerians and one Israeli arrested by the South African investigators is flawed and riddled with discrepancies.”
The group added, “Why is the Nigerian government trying to cover up the arms contract with an unauthorised agency and where were the arms to be purchased from and to whom were they meant?”
The group urged the UN to act swiftly on its petition for Nigerians to know the truth.
Drawing a parallel between the recent revelations by an Australian hostage negotiator, Dr. Stephen Davis, and the botched arms deal, the NUG said the UN must take urgent and holistic measures to investigate these issues for peace and security of Nigeria.
“We demand a full, urgent and independent investigation by the UN into the $9.3m arms deal which is both suspicious and flawed by all international standards of arms sales,” it said.
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