Lai Mohammed
Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, yesterday reacted to a
leaked letter to the Director General, National Broadcasting Commission
requesting for a loan of N13,120,470.00 to cover tickets and travel
expenses to China.
The letter on the trip to be led by Mohammed was leaked to the social media by a staff of the National Broadcasting Commission.
A statement signed by Director, Public Relations and Protocol,
Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, said the loan was to enable
the Minister and members of his delegation attend an all important
Conference on Tourism for Development in China.
Continuing he said, “The loan is not meant for the Honourable
Minister alone as personal expenses, but for the expenses of all members
of the delegation.
“The Conference, which is being organized by the United Nations
World Tourism Organisation in conjunction with the Government of the
People’s Republic of China, under the overall theme ‘Tourism for Peace
and Development,’ will feature amongst others, discussions on major
issues for sustainable development including the contribution of Tourism
to poverty reduction and peace.
“The Conference will also feature discussion on major issues
that have direct bearing on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),
poverty alleviation through Tourism and the linkage between Tourism
peace at the National and International levels.
“China on this occasion as chair of G20 will also host the 7th
T20 Ministers meeting under the theme- ‘Sustainable Tourism, An
Effective Tool for Inclusive Development.’
“The Conference is a veritable platform to develop synergy and
partnership with players in the global Tourism Industry which will go a
long way in boosting our drive to diversify the Nigerian economy.
“It is also important to note that the Minister and his
delegation were to have discussion in China with Set Top Box
Manufacturers, who are meant to establish manufacturing factories in
Nigeria for these boxes for our digital broadcasting processes, rather
than the current situation in which the boxes are being imported. This
is meant to conserve our foreign exchange and to also create avenue for
job creation for our citizens.
“From the foregoing, it is clear that the Conference is an all
important gathering that will benefit Nigeria, contribute towards
diversification of its revenue base and create employment opportunities
for Nigerians.
“Again, it is not unusual for an agency under the Ministry to
assist in order to carry out government functions. Moreover, the request
was discussed with the Ag. Director General NBC, who agreed to assist
with the loan before the letter was written. It is therefore shocking to
find out that an internal memorandum from the Ministry could be leaked
out to the social media by saboteurs in order to embarrass the
government.
“Please note, multiple letters were not written to government
agencies as alleged, we only wrote to NBC after discussing with the Ag.
DG. Payments were to be effected if the fund were loaned out based on
extant financial regulations. There is nothing wrong with the request of
the Ministry to meet up with an important assignment meant to benefit
the country.
“Finally, the loan that was requested for is NOT meant for Lai
Mohammed as being imputed but for the entire five members of the
delegation to cover for tickets, travel allowances and other
incidentals.”
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