The Presidency has denied that Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa State ever informed President Goodluck Jonathan of a N250m bribe that was collected by a serving Minister on which Mr. Jonathan refused to act.
According to a statement by presidential spokesman Reuben Abati, the claim by the governor was made in a radio interview.
Mr. Abati described the claim as “an unacceptable and callous attempt to unjustly impugn the integrity of President Jonathan and cast aspersions on the seriousness of his Administration’s efforts to curb corruption.”
He described the claim as an “unscrupulous, reckless and thoughtless peddling of arrant falsehood” for the purpose of personal and sectional political gains.
“If, as he claims, Alhaji Lamido has credible information about a minister receiving the said amount as bribe, he should publicly name the minister involved without delay and provide evidence to support his allegation,” the statement said.
“In the event that he is unable to do so, he should be prepared to offer an unreserved apology to the President and Nigerians for his unwarranted and unjust effort to denigrate, disparage and malign the President and the Federal Government.”
The problem with Mr. Jonathan’s denial is that of credibility; SaharaReporters has reported hundreds of corruption stories about the government since 2006, most of them since he ascended to the highest political office and some of them about his Ministers, all of which he has ignored.
He has also refused to lead by example, famously declaring in response to popular appeals to publicly declare his assets, “I don’t give a damn.”
Reporters however challenged Governor Lamido to publicly and urgently name the Minister in order to test the character of the president and his claims to “transformation.”
Yesterday, two of Governor Lamido’s sons, Aminu and Mustapha, were arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission over an alleged N10 billion money-laundering scheme.
Governor Lamido, an Olusegun Obasanjo ally, is one of Mr. Jonathan’s biggest critics within the People’s Democratic Party, and is thought to be a leading candidate for president in 2015.
Full text of the statement:
STATE HOUSE PRESS RELEASE
LAMIDO NEVER TOLD PRESIDENT JONATHAN OF $250 MILLION BRIBE ALLEGEDLY COLLECTED BY MINISTER
We have noted with much regret, the grossly irresponsible, false and mischievous claim by the Governor of Jigawa State, Alhaji Sule Lamido that President Goodluck Jonathan has refused to act on information that a serving minister recently collected a bribe of $250 million from an oil company.
The Presidency views the patently bogus allegation reportedly made by the Governor in a radio interview yesterday as an unacceptable and callous attempt to unjustly impugn the integrity of President Jonathan and cast aspersions on the seriousness of his Administration’s efforts to curb corruption.
The allegation and the claim by Alhaji Lamido that he informed President Jonathan of the acceptance of the huge bribe by an unnamed minister is absolutely without any foundation in fact or reality because no such communication has ever taken place between them.
We abhor Governor Lamido’s descent to the unscrupulous, reckless and thoughtless peddling of arrant falsehood in a puerile effort to score cheap political points against President Jonathan for personal and sectional political gains.
If, as he claims, Alhaji Lamido has credible information about a minister receiving the said amount as bribe, he should publicly name the minister involved without delay and provide evidence to support his allegation.
In the event that he is unable to do so, he should be prepared to offer an unreserved apology to the President and Nigerians for his unwarranted and unjust effort to denigrate, disparage and malign the President and the Federal Government.
While the Jonathan Presidency will continue to make corrupt public officials answerable for their actions, it will not succumb to harassment and blackmail by self-seeking politicians jostling for personal advantage.
Reuben Abati
Special Adviser to the President
(Media & Publicity)
November 15, 2013
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