Niger Delta leaders must come clean on how they spent billions of dollars in oil revenue accruing to the region over the years, Governor of Katsina State, Aminu Masari, has said.
“For six years we had a Niger Delta president. Let us see what difference he made in six years when he was president. When the excess crude account became pocket money, how much of the money went to the Niger Delta?” he queried.
Speaking in an interview published in the current edition of The Interview, the Katsina governor called out Niger Delta leaders, challenging them to “come clean” on how they managed the region’s resources.
The comment by Masari came on the heels of an assertion by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu on Saturday that the Federal Government had spent over $40billion in the Niger Delta in the past 12 years without commensurate result.
SEE ALSO: Nigeria Will Survive Without N/Delta’s Oil – Gov. Masari
In The Interview, the Katsina governor fired from the hips as he took on Senate President Bukola Saraki, opened up why former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s third term bid failed, and for the first time, shed light on ‘budget padding’. He also left nothing to the imagination when he spoke about his predecessor, Ibrahim Shema, and the Niger Delta.
Although he did not name names, Gov. Masari’s reference to a Niger Delta president was apparently targeted at Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, the immediate past president, under whose Presidency oil price averaged $100 per barrel.
Asked what he did to ensure accountability of oil money when he was Speaker of the House of Representatives and also a ranking member of the Peoples Democratic Party at the time, Mr. Masari said, “The House of Representatives has been friendly to the people of the Niger Delta than any other institution in the country”.
He asked the Federal Government to publish how much the region has received since the 13 percent derivation started.
