The Federal Government has explained why it negotiated the sum of $1.2 million for the buses hired to evacuate Nigerians from Sudan.

Recalls that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, said that the Federal Government spent $1.2m to deploy 40 buses to evacuate at least 2,400 stranded Nigerians out of Sudan.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development in a joint statement issued on Saturday that the amount in question was negotiated in a “condition of war”.

The statement was signed by the Director overseeing the Office of the Permanent Secretary, MFA, Amb. Janet Olisa, and Permanent Secretary, FMHADMSD, Dr. Nasir Sani-Gwarzo.

“The general public is also advised to discountenance unverified information being circulated on social media as some of them are either due to ignorance or sheer mischief. The outcry over the negotiated sum of $1.2 million for the buses hired for the exercise, is uncalled for.

“The amount in question was negotiated in a condition of war and where there are competing demands for the same bus services by other countries also trying to evacuate their citizens. Therefore, cooperation and understanding of all and sundry are required to complement ongoing efforts aimed at ensuring the safe return of every Nigerian trapped in Sudan,” the statement clarified.