The war of the billionaire competitors for Nigeria’s huge consumer market reared its head Monday, with BUA Group and major donor to the ongoing fight to check the ravaging effects of the deadly Coronavirus pandemic on the country, accusing the coalition (CACOVID) of playing politics by disowning payments for one million doses of AstraZeneca doses for Nigeria via the AFREXIM vaccine platform.

BUA described the statement by CACOVID, to which Nigerians have so far contributed N39bn, disowning its earlier payment through CACOVID as not only shocking, but “very petty and unbecoming of seemingly serious corporate citizens.

The action, it continued, “is tantamount to playing politics with the lives of Nigerians.

“This is no time for politics. It is time for us to come together to help Nigerians and it does not matter who is helping or paying,” the statement by BUA added.

Recalling what transpired at Monday’s steering committee meeting the BUA Group said: “members were informed by the CBN Governor that CACOVID had been given the opportunity through the Afrexim Platform to access and pay for one million doses, provided payment was made today or tomorrow- failure which the opportunity to get those doses next week may be lost.

“After extensive deliberations, there was no agreement reached and despite members being offered the opportunity to donate funds towards procuring the doses, none offered. BUA then took it upon itself to offer to pay for the one million doses at the agreed rate ofUS$3.45per dose totaling US$3.45m which translates to N1.311bn.”

Continuing, the statement explained that BUA’s chairman, Abdul Samad Rabiu, also requested through the CBN governor that the Naira equivalent be paid to the relevant account with CBN, and that CBN forward the dollar payment to Afrexim on CACOVID’s behalf.

The payment was made immediately after the meeting and BUA transferred the money to the CBN ahead of the deadline, the statement added, stressing that with the “development by the CACOVID operations committee, we now have a just cause to believe that some members of CACOVID were not happy that BUA took this initiative in the interest of Nigeria to ensure that the deadline was met to receive the one million doses of the vaccine next week.”

BUA in the statement stressed that it made the donation in good faith as it has done with its interventions throughout the pandemic,” accusing a prominent member of CACOVID who “is not happy that BUA took the initiative to pay for the vaccines – fulfilling our pledge just as we said during the meeting. Now they want to scuttle it by this action because they were unable to take the initiative.

It expressed readiness to keep supporting and despite this petty action, we have decided to let the money remain in the CACOVID Account with the CBN pending when they are ready to utilize the funds for Nigerians to access the vaccines.