ANNOUNCING $2BN FOR 2ND NIGER BRIDGE, MY MISTAKE —OSINBAJO
ANNOUNCING $2BN FOR 2ND NIGER BRIDGE,
MY MISTAKE —OSINBAJO
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has
admitted that he made a mistake in announcing the sum of $2 billion as the
money released by the Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) for the implementation of the
second Niger bridge.
He said in Abuja on Tuesday that
he actually meant to say N2 billion while speaking during the flag off of the
All Progressive Congress (APC) gubernatorial campaign in Anambra State
recently.
According to a statement issued by
his spokesman, Laolu Akande, the Vice President “misplaced the figures.”
The statement said: “During the APC
Governorship campaign flag-off in Onitsha, Anambra State, on Friday, October
20, 2017, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, had reiterated the Buhari
administration’s commitment to keeping its promises to the Nigerian people.
“One of these promises is the
construction of the second Niger Bridge.
“In the official press release I sent
on the Vice President’s remarks during the campaign rally in Onitsha that same
day, I did quote the VP as saying that ‘the Sovereign Wealth Fund paid N2
billion for that same project (Sum paid to the contractor: Julius Berger for
early works). We will definitely see our second Niger Bridge, we will not make
promises we cannot keep.’
“However, a short video clip from the
event captured on the news segment of a television channel quoted Prof.
Osinbajo as mentioning ‘$2bn’ and not ‘N2bn,’ which was what he had actually
meant to say. Mentioning the dollar currency was inadvertent.
“As it happened, the excerpt
from the video, which was shared online, was what was quoted in the
headlines of some media houses, and in comments on social media.
“The figures were misplaced. Kindly
set the records straight, from the speech I had sent.
“It is also pertinent to state that
the highlight of the rally and Prof. Osinbajo’s remarks was the commitment of
this administration to improve the country’s transportation network and
economy.”
