Nigerians have been raging over claims by the National Security Adviser (NSA) Major General Babagana Monguno (Rtd) that monies meant for the purchase of arms may have been misappropriated by the immediate ex-Service Chiefs.

Monguno, who made the disclosure in an interview with the Hausa Service of the BBC, further stated the new Service Chiefs have not seen the arms bought by their predecessors.

According to the NSA, it is still unclear how much money President Muhammadu Buhari has spent on arms and other equipment to fight terrorism and banditry in the country.

He said the government was working hard to address the ongoing security crisis, "which some Nigerians saw as a serious setback."

According to him: "No one knows what happened to the money, but God willing the President will investigate to find out where it went or where the goods went.

"As long as there is no proper investigation, I will not say anything but the money is gone, the goods are not seen and the new Security Chiefs say they have not seen it.

"Some may be on their way from the United States, England or elsewhere, but now I don't see them on the ground. The President has done his best to provide out-of-pocket funds but the goods have not been procured".

The revelation outraged Nigerians, especially on social media, who wondered if Buhari rewarded the ex-Service Chiefs with ambassadorial posting to cover up for the alleged misappropriation.

But Monguno recanted a few hours after the interview.

He claimed to have been quoted out of context.

The Office of the National Security Adviser, in a statement, said Munguno did not categorically say that monies meant for arms procurement were missing under the former Service Chiefs.

It said: "The attention of the Office of the National Security Adviser has been drawn to some media reports regarding Armed Forces equipment during an interview with the BBC Hausa service.

"We would like to state that the NSA was quoted out of context as he did not categorically say that funds meant for arms procurement were missing under the Former Service Chiefs as reported or transcribed by some media outlets from the BBC interview.

https://thenationonlineng.net/outrage-as-nsa-recants-on-alleged-missing-arms-funds/