DSS tackles BudgIT over fake project monitoring report

Nigeria’s budget monitoring and implementation civil society organisation BudgIT has published a report on social media that drew the fire of the DSS.

“To set the records straight, the DSS outrightly dismisses Tracka’s unfounded claims,” Peter Afunnaya, DSS spokesperson said in a press statement Tuesday.

“It further expresses dismay at the shoddy way Tracka embarked on its project verification exercise as well as the manner it drew conclusions without the slightest efforts to be diligent.”

The NGO allegedly traced a N1.1 billion Counter Terrorism Centre, which the DSS budgeted for, and claimed implemented in 2021, to Gubi Dam, Bauchi.

According to Afunnaya, on 19th February, 2022, Tracka, the monitoring organ of BudgIT, on its social media platforms, particularly Facebook and Twitter, posted that the construction of DSS Counter-Terrorism Training “not done”.

“It added that it “visited the site and discovered they only renovated a primary school and mosque adjacent to the site”. Tracka made other unsubstantiated and wild claims as part of its findings,” he said.

But DSS said its findings have shown that the Tracka Field Officer did not visit the project site where about 17 structures are simultaneously being executed by different contractors.

The primary school is the Nomadic Education Centre located at Galga, near Gubi Dam, Firo where the CTC is located.

“The Service, in conjunction with its Land School (site of the CTC), found the primary school in a bad state and decided to renovate it as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility,” he said.

“Surprisingly, Tracka only stopped its verification of the budget implementation at the primary school from where it drew hasty conclusions of non-implementation. What a lazy way of discharging a mandate.”

The DSS insists the CTC projects as captured in the 2019, 2020 and 2021 budgets are ongoing, and its Director General Yusuf Magaji Bich is committed to transparency, accountability and service.

“The public is hereby properly guided and should therefore disregard the initial story by Tracka, which is expected to show evidence that disciplinary action is being taken against its staff that misled it. This is how to be accountable and transparent,” Afunnaya said.

“To seek redress, the Service has brought the misinformation carried out by Tracka to its Management and in that regard sought a rebuttal and unreserved apology.”