Yobe spent N12bn on security – Governor

Yobe State Governor, Alhaji Ibrahim Gaidam, has said his government spent over N12bn on security-related issues due to the protracted Boko Haram crisis, with the Federal Government just donating a pittance of N150m.

The governor who spoke to the press through his media aide, Alhaji Abdullahi Bego, on Monday, disclosed that the donation was made during the outgone President Goodluck Jonathan administration. He said that no financial donation had been received from the present President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

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He however said the state government despite the heavy financial burden had not shied away from its numerous responsibilities in all other sectors of the state.

He said, “At a time that we are going through the worst security crisis of our lifetime, a crisis that continues to exert a heavy toll on our finances, the Yobe State Government under His Excellency Alhaji Ibrahim Gaidam has continued to keep faith with all its major responsibilities – paying workers their salaries regularly at the end of each month, helping to provide support to the security forces who are working to bring the prevailing Boko Haram insurgency to an end, and pushing on with the delivery of basic services. To date, the Yobe State Government has spent over N12bn on security-related matters.”

Bego also disclosed that the state government had done a lot to support people directly affected by Boko Haram attacks.

He said records from the Yobe State Emergency Management Agency showed that a total of 135, 511 Internally Displaced Persons are now scattered in 13 local government areas.

He further revealed that the state government had established IDPs camp in Damaturu with 3,011 persons, of this number, 482 are men, 670 women and 1,859 children.

He said there were two other camps set up by the IDPs themselves in Kasaisa and Kukareta with a population of over 2, 750 IDPs, noting that over the past two years SEMA had been supporting these IDPs, with additional support from NEMA and other development partners.

Bego stressed that the most recent support provided to people affected by Boko Haram insurgency was the sum of N61.8m given by the state government to some traders whose business was destroyed by the insurgents.