Governors hide security votes

Most state governments in the country are hiding the security votes in their budgets as the funds are not expressly stated in their appropriation acts, detailed Saturday Punch investigations spanning the length and breadth of the country have indicated.
States that fall into this category are Kaduna, Ondo, Ekiti and Anambra.
However, despite the deliberate omission of the figures in the state budgets, a huge amount of money running into billions of naira is spent yearly, which though is sanctioned by the constitution.
Such expenditures are not accounted for by the governors in line with the provisions of the constitution.
But Rivers, Imo, Lagos and Oyo states included their security votes in their 2011 Appropriation Acts.
However, two governors, Alhaji Musa Kwankwaso of Kano State and his counterpart in Imo State, Chief Rochas Okorocha, aroused public interest in security votes (funds) with their unprecedented declarations on the expenditure, shortly after they were sworn in.
Kwankwaso, whose first tenure ended in 2003, described security votes as another way of stealing public funds and vowed not to touch it, while Okorocha slashed his state’s security vote from N6.5bn to N2.5bn.
Okorocha said he was freeing the gains made in the cut for education and other areas in dire need of funding.
Kwankwaso had said, “For the four years I was governor, I had one jeep and three security vehicles. Only the jeep was brand new, while the other three were second hand. And, when I left the Government House, I left them there.
“Another thing is, my estacode was only N15,000 and no security vote.
“Security vote anywhere is stealing. I don’t believe in it, I never applied it during my first tenure (1999 to 2003).
“And I don’t think I’m going to apply same now, in that the provisions aid corruption in the art of governance. I will like to lead by example, and the moment you steal once, your successor will double your record.”
In states where security votes are not in their budgets, sources gave out what were allocated.
In 2011, Imo set aside N2.5bn as security vote, Rivers State, N7.5bn; Oyo State, N2bn; and Kaduna State, N8bn.
The monthly security vote of Ondo State is N500m.
With security challenges such as armed robbery, kidnapping and bombing campaigns on the increase across the country, many political observers are showing concern about how governors spend their security votes.
The picture in some of the states is as follows:

Rivers
Checks by our correspondent showed that Rivers allocated N7.5bn for security in its 2010 budget. The amount was also budgeted in 2011.
But a group known as the Niger Delta Citizens Budget Platform kicked against “the huge amount” earmarked as security vote for the state.
The group, in a statement signed by its coordinator, Mr. Ken Henshaw, decried such a huge provision at the expense of the health and education sectors.
However, in its reaction, the state government said the group’s position was not correct.
The state Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs. Ibim Semenitari, said the state had remained safe as a result of the government’s commitment to security.
Semenitari said, “Security does not come cheap. Talking about top of the range equipment and significant training and manpower development, the government has expended considerable resources to ensure this safety.”
Also, the acting Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Blessing Wikina, said it was wrong for the group to assert that the security vote in the state was high.
Wikina explained that considering the state of insecurity in the past, the group would have known where the state was coming from.
He said, “The state has done well in the area of security. The group does not understand the situation we were before as it concerns security and that is why it made such assertion out of ignorance.”

Oyo
Before he left office on May 29, 2011, the immediate governor of Oyo State, Chief Adebayo Alao-Akala, budgeted N2bn for security.
Explaining how the N2bn will be spent, spokesman for Governor Abiola Ajimobi, Dr. Festus Adedayo, said, “Although all security agencies, being federal organisations, receive subventions from the Federal Government, they have some needs that are peculiar to their operations in the state.
“Thus, the state government releases to them funds from this security vote that will supplement and complement federal allocations to them, but with the specific target of having the funds helping in the security needs of the state.
“It is hoped that if the security agencies, which collect this money from the state government monthly, use these funds judiciously, the security of the people of the state would be adequately catered for.”

Lagos
The Lagos State Government put its security expenditure under two headings in its 2011 budget: Public Order and Safety, and Social Protection.
While Public Order and Safety was allocated N12.763bn, which is 2.9 per cent, Social Protection got N6.137bn or 1.4 per cent of the budget.
The state also operates a Security Trust Fund, through which security-related issues are financed.
The Senior Special Adviser, Media, Mr. Hakeem Bello referred our correspondent to the Commissioner for Budget and Planning and Lagos State Trust Fund for proper explanation of the performance of the state’s allocation to security.
He however said that the state government paid a great deal of attention to all the security agencies in Lagos and was giving its support where necessary.
He said, “There is also a security committee made up of all the heads of the security agencies in the state. They meet once in a month and discuss nothing but security.”
Bello added that all funds for security were judiciously channelled towards ensuring the safety of lives and properties in Lagos.

Imo
Imo State will gain N4bn monthly from the reduction in the state security votes contained in the 2011 budget prepared by the government of Mr. Ikedi Ohakim.
Okorocha’s decision to reduce the vote has been applauded by the people of the state, especially the monarchs.
The governor said the N4bn would be spent on the free education programme of his administration.
To legitimise the reduction, the Imo State House of Assembly has passed a bill, which spells out how the slashing affected the public officers who benefit from the votes.
Accordingly, the security vote for the office of Secretary to State Government was reduced from N250m to N50m, while those of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker were reduced from N400m to N200m and N200m to N80m respectively.

Kano
Even though Kwankwaso will not spend any security vote, a perusal of the 2011 budget shows that security vote is not reflected in the budget prepared by the former administration of Alhaji Ibrahim Shekarau, which came to an end on May 29, 2011.

Ondo
Also, in Ondo State, there is no information on security vote in the 2011 budget.
However, a member of the state House of Assembly, who preferred anonymity, claimed the state House of Assembly increased the monthly security vote from N350m to N500m during the former Governor Olusegun Agagu administration, adding that the situation had remained the same.
Attempts to confirm his claim were, however, futile as both the Commissioner for Information, Mr. Ranti Akerele and the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Kolawole Olabisi, were mum on the issue.
A senior government official, however, said, “Honestly, you cannot get the information anywhere. Only the governor can tell you and this is not possible for now.”

Anambra
In Anambra State, the security vote of Governor Peter Obi has continued to be shrouded in secrecy. As in many states, it was not mentioned in the Anambra 2011 Appropriation Act.
Officials at the House of Assembly and the Government House were not willing to state the amount involved.
Even the Special Assistant to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Mr. Valentine Obienyem, declined comments on the matter.
At the state assembly, all the officials approached by one of our correspondents shied away from the issue, hiding under the excuse that they were just assuming duties.
But the Academic Staff Union of Universities alleged last year that the governor received N650m a month as security vote.
Obi, in a quick reaction then, denied the ASUU claim and threatened to resign if he actually received up to half of the amount alleged by the union. But he refused to state how much his security vote was.

Kaduna
In Kaduna State, attempts to get the actual amount budgeted for security this year proved abortive. The amount is not in the 2011 budget.
The Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Mr. Reuben Buhari, did not reply the SMS message sent to him by our correspondent on the matter. He later promised to get the information on it from the Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Lawal Yakawada.
Buhari never did at the time of going to the press.
Our correspondent, however, learnt from a senior government official who pleaded anonymity that about N8bn was allegedly budgeted as security vote for 2011.

Ekiti
In Ekiti State, officials did not know how much the government set aside as the vote for security.
The Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Olayinka Oyebode, told our correspondent that he would find out, but he failed to call back at the time of filing this report.
The chairman, House Committee on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs in the state, Mr. Adeyinka Adeloye, in an interview, said that security vote was not included in the budget.
He explained that the non-inclusion of the amount in the budget was deliberate because nobody would want that to leak, citing security reasons.
He said, “Security vote is not included in the budget. Things that bear on security are not made public in every part of the world. This is so because they can get into wrong hands. You will agree with me that security is a very important aspect of governance and no government can afford to joke with it.”

Kwara
According to the recurrent expenditure of the 2011 Kwara State Government budget, security expenses under Government House is N750m. Also, under recurrent expenditure for the Governor’s Office, a provision of N6m was made for expenses on the maintenance of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps. A provision of N12m was made for N12m for the upkeep of Security Council and Intelligence and Security Committee under recurrent expenditure of the Governor’s Office.

Enugu
The Budget Office, Ministry of Finance in Enugu State, on Thursday said that no specific amount was allocated for security votes in its 2011 budget.
By Emmanuel Obe, Chukwudi Akasike, Olalekan Adetayo, Segun Olatunji, Sunday Aborisade, Sesan Olufowobi, Mustapha Salihu, Success Nwogu, and Ozioma Ubabukoh   
Courtesy Of: Punch