Ex-Plateau deputy gov faults public declaration of security vote

Former Deputy Governor of Plateau State, Chief Jethro Akum, has  stated that it is a personal choice for any governor to declare his salary and security votes but warned that declaration of security votes for political reasons might lead to crisis if not properly handled.

The governor of  Kaduna State Mallam Nasir el-Rufai,  on Monday, made public his monthly pay slip and specifics of security budget as demanded by Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara.

Speaking with the Nigerian Tribune, the former deputy governor said the governor of Kaduna State had the right to declare his salary and security but added that such declaration could not be  foisted on any state because it is a matter of choice.

“El Rufai has the right to make such declaration, it is a matter of choice. You cannot play politics with security vote, the declaration is his choice but is that the ethic of managing security vote?. There is the need for caution and further discourse on this.

“Managing security vote depends on the discipline of a governor but we need to handle this with care. Salary can be declared publicly, it is not hidden because the salary is not new to Nigerians but security vote could be controversial, so it needs to be handle with care.

“ But another question the Governor of Kaduna State needs to answer is that did he declare his asset publicly when he assumed office, this is more important than any other things. Is he willing to declare his asset at the point of exit? To me declaring security vote is just politics “ he said.

According to him, any other state that wanted to emulate him could go ahead but it needed to be done with caution.