Former Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, has said the $1bn approved by the National Economic Council (NEC) in 2019, under the late President Muhammadu Buhari, for arms procurement was released to the Federal Ministry of Defence and not the services.
The former COAS made the clarification on Monday in a keynote address titled, “Beyond Kinetic Warfare: Harnessing Technology and Intelligence-led Operations for Nigeria’s National Security,” at the 3rd conference of the Defence Correspondents Association of Nigeria (DECAN).
“Not a single dollar of that fund passed through my hands or through the accounts of the Nigerian Army, Navy or Air Force,” Buratai said.
“The funds were released to the Ministry of Defence, and the entire procurement process was handled by that Ministry. The Army, Navy and Air Force never had a single dollar from that fund to make procurement directives,” he added.
Buratai described allegations that the money was diverted for electoral purposes as “political and malicious.”
“They — allegations — first surfaced during the 2019 election period, when the opposition alleged the funds had been diverted for electoral purposes, a claim the Federal Government publicly refuted. Yet the stain remained, attached to Service Chiefs rather than the institution that managed the funds,” he said.
He blamed the media for failing to investigate why the Ministry of Defence, under the late President Muhammadu Buhari, had never clarified the procurement process.
According to him, the ministry had not publicly explained how the funds were disbursed or contracts awarded.
He stressed the need for accountability to be properly established.
In his remarks, the Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa (retd.), noted that the conference theme addressed the changing nature of contemporary security challenges.
Represented by his Special Adviser, Air Commodore Stephen Ogunmodede (retd.), Musa said the theme addressed an operational reality that the Armed Forces and other security agencies must continually confront.
He added that, for a long time, public understanding of security operations had been shaped largely by visible military actions, including troop deployments, engagements, territory recovered and arrests made.
He described current threats as increasingly complex, adaptive and interconnected, noting that terrorist groups, criminal networks and other adversaries exploit information, technology, financial systems and gaps in coordination to pursue their objectives.
“Consequently, our response must combine effective combat operations with timely intelligence, technological capability, sound planning and cooperation among relevant security institutions,” he said.
On his part, the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, noted that in today’s information age, security operations are fought not only on the battlefield but also in the information domain.
He said a single AI-generated video could undo months of operational gains, endanger troops and cause panic in communities, urging DECAN to remain a critical partner to the military.
Speaking through the Director of Defence Information, Maj.-Gen. Samaila Uba, Oluyede said, “As defence correspondents, you occupy a unique position as gatekeepers, fact-checkers and bridge-builders. I therefore call on DECAN to uphold truth as a national security imperative; verify with Defence Headquarters before publishing sensitive operational content,” adding that speed must never come at the expense of accuracy.
“The Defence Headquarters is increasingly concerned about the growing menace of AI-generated fake videos, manipulated images, cloned voices and false operational claims being deliberately circulated to mislead the public, incite fear, discredit our troops, and undermine national security efforts. These deepfakes are not mere misinformation; they are weapons of psychological warfare aimed at eroding public trust in the Armed Forces and rupturing the vital bond between the military and the citizenry,” he said.
In his welcome address, DECAN President Odita Sunday urged the country to prepare for tomorrow’s challenges by investing in intelligence, technology, cybersecurity, human capital, research and inter-agency cooperation.
