BCDA denies making illegitimate payments into private accounts

The Border Communities Development Agency (BCDA) has denied reports that it made illegitimate payments into the private accounts of individuals in the agency, insisting that no other payments except legitimate ones to staff members to carry out official duties were made.

Reacting to a report by an online publication (not Ripples Nigeria) in a statement signed by the Head, Public Affairs and Protocol, BCDA, Sadiq Isa, on Monday in Abuja, the Agency, said there were instead, a series of legitimate payments in the agency.

Isa further said that if there were to be anything untoward in the payments they would not be on the federal government Treasury Open Payment Platform.

Speaking on the issue of payments to staff for Duty Tour Allowance (DTA) and conferences, Isa said the payments were made in 2019 and have been verified, authenticated and audited by Federal Government Agencies responsible for routine and yearly auditing at the end of the 2019 Financial Year.

The statement read in part: “It is pertinent to point out that upon receipt of the FOI request, the Agency directed two Senior Staffers to visit the office of the online newspaper. During the visit, all relevant documents were presented for sighting. These include the original copies of memos, approvals, payment vouchers, and receipts in respect of the mentioned payments.”

Unfortunately, the statement said, the online paper decided to ignore all presented facts.

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This is contrary to the allegation that the Agency did not oblige the FOI request.

“That the payments were for a whole range of activities- not less than 25 programmes- among which were trainings, conferences, projects inspection, visitations, consultancy payments, project handing-over, community engagement and sensitization in 21 states of the Federation were conveniently ignored,” the statement further said.

The statement further said that since the assumption of office by the Executive Secretary, Captain Junaid Abdullahi, in 2018, the agency has executed and handed over 1,031 projects across different border communities in 21 Border States of the country.

“These projects are both in social and economic sector which have positive impact on the lives and livelihoods of Nigerians living at the border communities.

‘Also there are 457 projects currently ongoing in the 2020 financial year.They cut across areas such as: Agriculture, Education, Health, Clean Water and Sanitation, Electrification, Commerce, Access Roads and Bridges, Housing and Human Capital Development.”

The statement further reiterated that these payments were not personal or individual to the mentioned officers, but to a group of staffers for expenditures that span over a period of five months.

“For clarity, the payments were not only with respect to DTA, but also for other services, as stated above,” the statement added.

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