The All Progressives Congress (APC) has accused the presidency of being
economical with the truth in its response to the widespread condemnation
of President Goodluck Jonathan for hobnobbing with accused Boko Haram
sponsor Ali Modu Sheriff.
In a statement issued in Dubai on Friday by its National Publicity
Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the presidency's stout
defence of Sheriff's presence at President Jonathan's meeting with host
President Idris Deby of Chad, and the fact that the presidency's statement
was coordinated with the one by Sheriff's spokesman, has shown that the
APC is right to have called for the trial of Sheriff and other alleged
Boko Haram sponsors by the International Criminal Court (ICC), instead of
the Nigerian security agencies which are under the Jonathan spell.
It said President Jonathan has not got the liver to investigate and
prosecute the accused, who are his friends, adding: ”How can you prosecute
a person who accompanies you on a high level security meeting to a foreign
head of state?”
”The presidency said the security agencies are investigating Sheriff and
that the President will not interfere, but what message was the President
sending to the security agencies by circulating the picture of the accused
with himself? Is that a subtle message to the security agencies that the
accused is a friend of the President hence he is untouchable?
”The presidency said Sheriff has a long standing business in Chad.
Is the presidency not aware of the memo sent home by the Nigerian Defence
Adviser in Chad concerning Sheriff? Why didn't the presidency tell
Nigerians whether or not the investigation recommended by the Defence
Adviser over Sheriff's alleged sponsorship of Boko Haram was ever carried
out, and if so what was the outcome? APC queried.
It insisted that President Jonathan exhibited palpable indiscretion by
allowing himself to be photographed with an accused terrorism sponsor
while on a foreign trip to rally support for his country's anti-terrorism
efforts.
”It is really irrelevant whether or not the President took Sheriff along
to Chad or he met him there.
What matters and what the entire world saw, through the picture that was
widely circulated, was that Sheriff sat in with President Jonathan and
President Deby at their meeting. That was the clincher.
”The presidency, in its reaction to the global condemnation of the
President's unholy alliance with an alleged Boko Haram sponsor, should
have realized that while President Jonathan has definitely subjected
Nigerians to the most harrowing experience, they are not stupid yet.
”Why would the President even allow Sheriff into the venue of his meeting
with President Deby? Can anyone just go and be sitting with President
Jonathan in a meeting with the Chadian President just because the fellow
happens to be in the Chadian capital at the time?. What happened to
security clearance, protocol etc.?
”Is the presidency telling Nigerians that if President Jonathan were
visiting the South African President Jacob Zuma, and Atiku Abubakar, who
is well known to be a good friend of President Zuma, also happens to be in
Pretoria at the same time, he will simply drive up to the venue and be
part of the meeting?
The truth is that President Jonathan was wrong to have showcased Sheriff,
an accused Boko Haram sponsor, as a face of his Administration while on a
foreign trip to rally support against terrorism, unless of course the
President wanted to send a subtle signal to those investigating the
allegation,” APC said
The post Boko Haram: APC Says Jonathan Has No Liver To Prosecute Sheriff appeared first on Pointblank News
No comments:
Post a Comment