Richard Mills, the United States Ambassador to Nigeria has refuted allegation that the United States Agency for International Development, (USAID) is funding Boko Haram or any terrorist group, asserting that there is no evidence.
Mills declared at the aftermath of meeting with the Nigeria Governors Forum in Abuja late Wednesday night that no nation condemns Boko Haram’s destruction more greater than the US.
He affirmed that if any evidence is discovered, the US government will collaborate with the Nigerian government in it investigation.
TodayPriceNG had earlier reported that on February 13, Congressman Scott Perry accused USAID of funding terrorist groups, not excluding Boko Haram.
Boko Haram is a terrorist group established in year 2002 by Mohammed Yusuf. The group’s motives is the promotion of Sunni Islam and terminating Shia Islam in Nigeria.
In previous years, many Nigerians lives had been lost, properties worth billions of Naira has been destroyed, while many families have experience displacement.
Perry, a Republican from Pennsylvania, made the declaration during the first hearing of the Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency.
The session, titled “The War on Waste: Stamping Out the Scourge of Improper Payments and Fraud,” centered on alleged misappropriations of taxpayer funds.
“Who gets some of that money? Does that name ring a bell to anybody in the room? Because your money, your money, $697 million annually, plus the shipments of cash funds in Madrasas, ISIS, Al-Qaeda, Boko Haram, ISIS Khorasan, terrorist training camps. That’s what it’s funding,” he stated.
In a reaction, the Senate has beckoned on the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, including the heads of the National Intelligence Agency and the Defence Intelligence Agency, to tackle allegations of terrorist funding with the involvement of USAID.
While answering a question, the US Ambassador declared that the US has rigid policies in the prevention of USAID or any other US assistance from being redirected to terrorist groups like Boko Haram.
He stated, “Let me be clear—there is no friend of Nigeria stronger in condemning Boko Haram’s violence and disregard for human life than the United States. We have designated Boko Haram as a foreign terrorist organisation since 2013, blocking the group from transferring assets to the US and allowing us to arrest and seize its members.
“We cooperate in investigations with the Nigerian government. I can assure you that we have strict policies and procedures to ensure that USAID funding or any other US assistance, whether from USAID, the Department of Defence, or the State Department, is not diverted to terrorist groups like Boko Haram.
“There is absolutely no evidence of such diversion, and if we ever had evidence that any programme funding was being misused by Boko Haram, we would immediately investigate it with our Nigerian partners.
“So, when it comes to Boko Haram, the United States stands with Nigeria in wanting to rid this country of the scourge that this organisation represents.”
He cleared the air that President Donald Trump’s administration did not stop assistance but implemented a 90-day pause to develop ways in making it more effective.
Mills highlighted, “No assistance has been cut yet, and no decisions have been made about the future of our assistance. In fact, US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, has said that this is not about ending foreign assistance to our partners like Nigeria. It’s about making our assistance more effective and aligning it with US government policies and interests.
“That’s what this 90-day pause is for. However, there are waivers for life-saving assistance, such as support for HIV patients, maternal and child nutrition, and internally displaced people. So that continues. In 90 days, we will know where we stand.”
In relation to other issues discussed with the 36 state governors, the US Ambassador stated that he highlighted the embassy’s vision for the future of the US-Nigerian relationship.
He stated, “I explained to them that we are going to focus on four key priorities in the coming years. The first is improving the business environment to increase trade and investment between the United States and Nigeria.
“Second, a renewed focus on improving transparency and accountability in Nigeria, fighting corruption, and empowering Nigerian voices advocating for more transparency.
“Third, we want to be more engaged at the subnational level, at the state level, and with local governing authorities. I believe the embassy needs to engage more in this area as we develop our programs and assistance.
“Lastly, we discussed our health care programmes, which are a large part of US assistance to Nigeria. As these programmes succeed—such as reducing HIV cases and eradicating polio—we want to ensure their sustainability and transition them to the Nigerian government at the federal and state levels.”
Mills declared that the target is to foster the sustainability of these health programmes and bring them to the Nigerian government for adequate management, helping to establish a healthcare
