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Stop using security votes for politics, youths caution politicians

By Saxone Akhaine, Kaduna
18 July 2018   |   3:08 am
A civil society organisation, Arewa Youths for Progress and Development (AYPAD), has cautioned the Federal Government against deploying security votes to politics and others activities that undermine the nation’s democracy. The group’s president, Comrade Danjuma Sarki, told The Guardian yesterday in Kaduna that unless the concerned authorities redirected the funds to combat criminal activities nationwide,…

Mallam Danjuma Sarki

A civil society organisation, Arewa Youths for Progress and Development (AYPAD), has cautioned the Federal Government against deploying security votes to politics and others activities that undermine the nation’s democracy.

The group’s president, Comrade Danjuma Sarki, told The Guardian yesterday in Kaduna that unless the concerned authorities redirected the funds to combat criminal activities nationwide, the country would remain on the precipice as it prepares for the 2019 general elections.

According to him, “I think it is morally wrong and irrational for the governors to use the resources they have in form of security votes carelessly without addressing the problems in their states.

“In most cases, the use of the security votes by the governors is without transparency or accountability.

This money, they are expending, belongs to the people.”

He continued: “If the money is released to you and you are spending it the way you like, I think this is very wrong.

Security votes should not be expended without accountability.

It is not even acceptable to say governors should have security votes without tying them to actual security issues.

This is a major source of corruption and a factor that undermines the nation’s democracy.

“Nigerians are not secured even with the security votes given to the governors and you will also find out that criminal activities go on everywhere in Nigeria.

So, what is the essence of the security votes dished out to the governors?

Presently, you can see that the killings and attacks by insurgents are still ongoing.

“Where are the security votes deployed? It is wrong for the governors or president to use the funds unaccounted for. Even if they want to use the money, it should have a purpose.

We should know that the governor is to spend a certain percentage from the security vote for some purposes and that amount should be accounted for.”

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