A Nigerian security expert, Kabiru Adamu, has dismissed allegations made by a US lawmaker, Scott Perry, that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is sponsoring Boko Haram, the terrorist group operating in Nigeria and the wider West African region.
Perry, who represents Pennsylvania in the US Congress, made the claims during the inaugural hearing of the Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency. Speaking at a session titled “The War on Waste: Stamping Out the Scourge of Improper Payments and Fraud”, Perry alleged that USAID funds have been diverted to support terrorist organizations, including Boko Haram, ISIS, and Al-Qaeda.
According to Perry, USAID allocated $136 million to build 120 schools in Pakistan, but he claimed there was “zero evidence” of the schools’ existence. He further alleged that $697 million in taxpayer funds had been funneled to madrasas, terrorist training camps, and extremist groups.
“Who gets some of that money? Does that name ring a bell to anybody in the room?” Perry said. “Because your money—$697 million annually—plus shipments of cash funds madrasas, ISIS, Al-Qaeda, Boko Haram, ISIS-Khorasan, and terrorist training camps. That’s what it’s funding.”
The claims have stirred controversy, particularly as Elon Musk, the tech billionaire leading the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) under former President Donald Trump, recently described USAID as “evil and a criminal organization.”
Reacting to the allegations in an interview with Channels Television, Kabiru Adamu expressed skepticism, noting the absence of credible evidence to support Perry’s assertions.
“Such issues are not new. They have been on the table for a very long time, but the manner in which the current US government is washing its dirty linen in public is concerning,” Adamu said.
He criticized the Trump administration’s approach to sensitive matters, describing it as impulsive.
“When we assessed Trump’s four years in office, we expected volatility. We knew there would be some impulsive reactions, but this is beyond what we anticipated. Since the creation of DOGE, the department has attempted to do a lot in the name of improving government efficiency. And of course, you have to consider the Republicans’ position on the matter, especially that of Trump’s supporters.”
Adamu also suggested that the allegations might be politically motivated.
“Now, Rep. Scott Perry is a Republican. There’s a narrative among Republicans—especially those aligned with Trump—that the previous Democratic administration supported inefficiency in government. In their bid to push this narrative, we are hearing these kinds of allegations.”
The security expert further questioned the validity of Perry’s claims, particularly the alleged connection between Boko Haram and groups like the Taliban.
“There is a connection between espionage and development assistance. For example, when the US was trying to locate and eliminate former Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, they leveraged development aid. There is a close relationship between the two. But the way Scott Perry puts it — associating or linking the Taliban to Boko Haram—I’m struggling to see that connection,” Adamu explained.
He clarified that Boko Haram, which initially pledged allegiance to Al-Qaeda, later shifted its loyalty to ISIS in 2016.
“Initially, Boko Haram was affiliated with Al-Qaeda until 2016, when it switched allegiance to ISIS. In Nigeria and the Sahel, there are two local jihadist groups affiliated with these two franchises. If anyone has evidence of a local jihadist group linked to the Taliban, that would be news to me.”
Adamu highlighted the geographical inconsistencies in Perry’s claims.
“If I heard him correctly, Perry was referring to Afghanistan before later mentioning Pakistan. The government in Afghanistan is Taliban-led. The Taliban, ISIS, and Al-Qaeda are different entities. So, if funds are going to training camps in Afghanistan, and Perry then brings up Boko Haram, it was expected that he would provide some evidence.”
The security expert emphasized the need for verifiable evidence and cautioned against the spread of misinformation, especially regarding sensitive security matters.
The US government and USAID have yet to issue a formal response to Perry’s allegations.
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