Ex-Bauchi Governor: I spent N1.27b on burials, not N2.3b

Former Governor of Bauchi State, Mohammed Abubakar, has said he spent N1.27 billion on burials and not N2.3 billion as alleged by his successor, Governor Bala Mohammed.
Abubakar, who lost his reelection bid on the platform of the All Progressives Congress to Mohammed, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, said this in a statement by his media aide, Muktar Jibril, on Tuesday.
Jibril made the denial in response to a statement on Monday by Mohammed’s spokesman, Dr. Ladan Salihu, who alleged that Abubakar spent N2.3 billion on funerals in five months.
He said: “In response to media reports on the issue of mahogany and shrouds procured for burials, we want to state that this is a practice inherited by the government of Abubakar from its predecessors. Considering its significance and impact on the people, especially the bereaved, it decided to continue with it.
“However, the project, like any other of same magnitude, was awarded to qualified contractors. Based on available verifiable record, N1,270,743,520 had been expended since its inception and not the exaggerated figure of N2.3 billion mischievously posted on the social media by critics.
“We urge the good people of the state to disregard this insinuation and act of desperation by elements of retrogression.”