The Federal Government has described its decision to splash $1.2 million on the 40 buses hired to evacuate stranger Nigerians from Sudan as a “Condition of War”.
The clarification was made on Saturday in a Joint statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development.
The statement was signed by the Director overseeing the Office of the Permanent Secretary, MFA, Amb. Janet Olisa, and Permanent Secretary, FMHADMSD, Dr. Nasir Sani-Gwarzo.
“The general public is also advised to discountenance unverified information being circulated on social media as some of it is either due to ignorance or sheer mischief. The outcry over the negotiated sum of $1.2 million for the buses hired for the exercise, is uncalled for.
“The amount in question was negotiated in a condition of war and where there are competing demands for the same bus services by other countries also trying to evacuate their citizens. Therefore, cooperation and understanding of all and sundry are required to complement ongoing efforts aimed at ensuring the safe return of every Nigerian trapped in Sudan,” the statement clarified.
Recall that no fewer than 5,500 Nigerian students are stranded due to the ongoing crisis in Sudan.
The government had released N150m for hiring 40 buses to convey its desperate citizens from Sudan to Cairo in Egypt.
The money was said to have been paid to a transport company on Tuesday at 12:37 pm by
The Central Bank of Nigeria paid the money directly to the transport company account on Tuesday noon through the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).
