$2.1bn arms deal: We didn't know compensations were from arms fund - Nduka Obaigbena

Chairman of ThisDay newspapers and president of Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) Nduka Obaigbena has written to EFCC on allegations he received part of the controversial arms deal money. In a letter yesterday, Obaigbena said his company and NPAN didn’t know that the N670million compensation they got from the office of the National Security Adviser were from arms purchase fund. Obaigbena disclosed this in his reaction to EFCC on the payments his company and the 12 other newspapers received from the NSA in 2015. In a letter sent to EFCC, Obaigbena said;

"We never participated in any arms purchase in any shape or form and only demanded compensation for a horrendous terrorist act against us. In the same way, the United Nations and others who may have received some compensation could not have known the line budget items for the funds being used for the reconstruction of the UN Abuja buildings. Even the Nigerian Guild of Editors, which may have received donations for their secretariat from the ONSA, could not have known which subhead it was paid from. We simply cannot know or be expected to speculate which line item the spending was made from by the ONSA. There is simply no nexus between payments made for compensation, to us victims of terrorism as well as to newspapers in compensation for an unprovoked attack on free speech, and any arms purchase budget'

We do not deserve further trauma because some official(s), outside of our control, may or may not have followed due process. All victims of terrorist attack deserve a fair and just compensation. The fact that we have received some remedy should be reason to accelerate compensation for all victims of Boko Haram attacks across Nigeria however big or small,” he said.