FG to summon S'African envoy over botched arms deal

There are strong indications that the Federal Government may summon the South African Ambassador to Nigeria, Lulu Mnguni, over the botched arms deal which led to the seizure of millions of dollars meant for the purchase of military hardware.

It was learnt that some senior officials met on Wednesday in Abuja where they decided that the time was ripe for Nigeria to address frontally the embarrassing blockage of the arms deal by South Africa.

The South African authorities had confiscated $9.3m and $7.5m meant for purchase of arms by Nigeria in two separate incidents, on the guise that the deals violated its laws.

Our correspondent learnt that it was decided that the Ambassador should be summoned to explain Pretoria’s rationale for its action against Nigeria, in view of the various political and economic benefits South Africa had enjoyed from her relationship with the Federal Government.

A source said the decision to summon Mnguni had been taken by senior government officials and he was to have been invited by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday, but our correspondent was unable to ascertain why the move was shelved.

“The FG is really angry with South Africa over its handling of a legal transaction, especially its continued antagonism to Nigeria and embarrassing leakage of the arms deal to the public in a bid to humiliate Nigeria.

“A decision to summon the South African ambassador had been taken and he would have to explain why his country has been embarrassing Nigeria before the comity of nations,” the source stated.

But when contacted, Mnguni, said he had not received any summons from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs over the arms deal.

Asked if the Federal Government had formally approached his country over the botched deal, the ambassador explained that he had not received any formal communication to that effect.

He said, “I have not received any formal communication from the (Nigerian) government, but they may have asked the (Nigerian) ambassador in South Africa to reach out to the authorities because he would have direct access to the government there.”