NGOs fund terrorists, insurgents - Umar Jibril

He made this disclosure while defending his proposed NGO Regulation Bill which has been suggested to be harmful to religious bodies and humanitarian agencies in the country.

In his signed press statement on Friday, September 22, 2017, he said that the bill will ensure more transparency and responsibility in the financial operations of such organisations operating in the country.

In a dismissal of the objections raised against the bill, Jibril said that people have been able to exploit the system to set up fraudulent organisations.

He said, "Religious bodies and organisations are not NGOs. Our quasi-financial institutions at local levels are not NGOs! These organisations have existed for centuries to serve businesses and commerce of our market women and traders.

"However, recent developments have shown that some people registered NGOs, solicited for funds and disappeared. That happened recently in the north-east. Some NGOs are used to fund the activities of terrorist and insurgents.

"The NGO bill, therefore, is primarily to set up a commission to regulate their activities and provide a platform for robust relationships between them and the government for the interests of Nigerians.

"In addition, it is to ensure transparency and accountability in the ways and manners the NGOs collect monies and use them for Nigerians."

Jibril also went on to condemn the public's reaction towards the bill, most notably singling out the Socio-Economic Right And Accountability Project (SERAP).

It's also considered to be a response to former chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Chidi Odinkalu, who recently launched a campaign against the bill.

"Finally, the way the NGOs are reacting to this wonderful and well-packaged bill, particularly SERAP, is not only shameful but condemnable.

"The Nigerian parliament is an institution governed by rules and traditions. When a bill is for public hearing you go there and present your views like other interested Nigerians and invited corporate bodies and government agencies for the standing committee to do justice to the bill. Period.

"Going on cheap propaganda and blackmail and even calling on world bodies including the United Nation to help you withdraw a bill from our national assembly will not help you," Jibril added.

According to Odinkalu, the NGO Regulation Bill proposes to create an NGO Regulatory Commission which will be headed by an Executive Secretary appointed by the president for five years and a 17-member governing board, led by a chairman.

The board will possess the powers to licence all NGO's before they can commence operations, a licence that has to be renewed every 24 months.

The organisations must also submit reports of where they are getting money from and how much, as well as secure the board's permission before spending any money received.

If passed into law, any violation of the bill is a crime punishable with up to 18 months in prison.