A former Senior Special Assistant on Public Affairs to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Doyin Okupe, has accused President Muhammadu Buhari of pursuing a selective war against corruption and ignoring the rule of law.
According to Okupe, recent developments including the arrest of the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Olisa Metuh, is making the President to lose respect.
“Buhari is respected but with the hounding of opposition members, he is losing respect in the eyes of the international community. This selective probe is eroding his integrity,” He told newsmen yesterday.
Okupe condemned Metuh’s detention, insisting that the PDP sourced and utilised its campaign funds the same way the All Progressives Congress did.
He said, “The Federal Government should not try to dabble into or control the finances of the PDP. The way and manner the ruling party is undertaking its selective probe by hounding opposition leaders is unbecoming and very disheartening.
“Party finances are not the business of the government. The former National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, cannot deny that he didn’t collect money for campaigns during the last elections.
“Why is the Federal Government not asking questions on the sources of the APC’s campaign funds? The way the PDP spent billions of naira to fund its campaigns in the media was the same way the APC did theirs? Where did the APC get its campaign funds from? The opposition must be given the liberty to thrive.”
Reacting to an allegation that a former Minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, benefited from the $2.1bn arms funds, Okupe said the former minister merely provided a service to the PDP during the electioneering and should not be questioned.
Okupe urged the President to be tolerant of criticism even as he condemned a statement credited to the National Chairman of the APC, John Odigie-Oyegun, in which the APC chair asked Nigerians not to abuse Buhari.
He advised Buhari to emulate Jonathan who he said was insulted by many leaders of the opposition but never retaliated.
Fani-Kayode had said on Wednesday that the All Progressives Congress spent more than the Peoples Democratic Party which was in power during the last general elections.
Fani-Kayode, who was the spokesperson for the Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation, made the claim while reacting to the probe of some key officials of the PDP by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.
He said, “No election campaign anywhere in the world, including that of President Buhari was run with just words, goodwill, grass and pebbles and neither were we given free campaign adverts or airtime. All these things were run and paid for with large sums of money.
“This is especially so with publicity and media because that was the lifeblood of the various campaigns. I repeat, there is nothing that we did in the campaign organisation or that my directorate did that Lai Mohammed, Buhari and the APC did not do in theirs.
‘As a matter of fact, they spent far more than we did but I have no idea where they got their money and whether they were private or public funds.”
The ex-minister also denied reports that he collected N1.7bn from the embattled former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki. Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
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The Okuugbe has come out of his hiding. Does President Buhari need your recognition before he cleans up the country of the mess you and cronies brought on Nigeria?
ReplyDeleteIf you got the blood money, refurn it before you are invited by EFCC.
Enter your comment...noisemaker. Pray that ur does not appear in d Dasukigate scandal cos it will not take 2 minutes to pick u up.
ReplyDeleteHave u tried verifying whether he is saying the truth or not? Let us continue to cultivate evil in the land and expect to reap good, whatever u sow is what u will reap. Fighting corruption must be done within the confines of the law, failure to do so is an abuse of power which in itself is corruption.
ReplyDeleteWhat do u think will happen if PDP captures power back? Hell will be let loose and no one will utter a single word.
This tells how their brain works in term of thinking and confirmation that the Arm procurement fund was used for PDP campaign.
ReplyDeleteEFCC is only investigating $2.1 billion arm fund and not PDP’s campaign funds source.
This show how heartless this people are when people were being killed and great soldiers are in line for execution bcos of your selfishness and heartless behavior.
PDP campaign fund should not have come from this source at all
Do you ask your self from which source did they get this money. It wasn't a budgetary allocation. It was part of the money from Abacha loots. Which was channeled to defence and security. From inception every government allocates a certain amount of money for the presidency, the Head of state, the state governors and military administrators as security votes every month. And they owe no body any explanation on how they used their security votes.PMB can not deny this facts when he was a military head of state, and did not procure a single gun, so also the present Governors.EFCC may have to investigate PMB when he was a military head of state and the likes of them till Jonathan, what they did with the security votes, before crucifying the PDP and Dasuki.
DeleteWhile an officer does not have to give an account of the Security Vote allocated to him, the Security Vote is budgeted for and not arbitrarily given. Money recovered from Abacha belongs to the people of Nigeria and should never have been given out as "Security Vote" to anyone. GEJ gave the country's money to one man called Dasuki, to distribute for his (GEJ's) re-election campaign? In America both of them would go to jail. In China, both of them would face the firing squad!
DeleteOh, dis man still dey exist. Relax and don't be in a rush as EFCC will soon invite u over. Mumu......
ReplyDeleteSometime I wonder what kind of ppl were in this nation that sense of reasoning is down in their anus have u 4gotten that the same set of ppl ruling since 1999 were the ones ruling up till date so who is fooling who
ReplyDeleteWhat an irony? This fool called PMB names during the election and vowed he was not worthy of any respect because he forged result.
ReplyDeleteThe arms'fund is now the campaign fund. Everyone that partook in the sharing of the blood money will end up in jail by the special grace of God. It's heartless for the country to be at war and those that were in charge kept stealing the fund meant to prosecute the war in the name of campaign fund. You all shall not find peace iJmn.
Mr Okuuigbe it will soon reach your turn with EFCC. Omo oleeeeeee. You go soon spend your life in kirikiri. Monkey.
ReplyDeleteTrue talk. With people like you still free out there when you should be hobnobbing with Dasuki
ReplyDeleteIt's really annoying when I get to read some pathetic stories from some members of the last administration. They keep complaining of witch hunting. I guess they fail to realize that they were the ones in power from 1999 to 2015...the period when oil sells above $100/barrel. The PDP was in power and not APC for crying out loud! In short, who do the PDP want the present administration to go after? Is it the APC that isn't up to a year? Please PMB...hit them mother f**kers PDP HARDER!
ReplyDeleteBefore us real and passionate Nigerians he is not but before you and your likes he may be. PMB all the way common Nigerians are behind you gidigba.
ReplyDeleteMr Okupe did you forget that you change your name to bastard, you're the one said if APC survived till 2014, we should call u bastard but now you're bastard bastard bastard idiot, you're soon be invited to EFCC nonsense
ReplyDeleteIs the campaign money of the APC from the arm procurement or blood money , let us know , you gang of looters .It will soon reach.Mr Okupe
ReplyDeleteThis man cannot exonerate himself from any form looting and let him know that the music has Change. For God sake what kind of respect is he talking about?
ReplyDeleteDoes dis Okupe tink b4 he speak? Y is he indicting his PDP. How could one justify d diversion of budgetary security provision into campaign?.... For Christ sake, dis looters r responsible 4 over 17000 deaths blame on BH. Its BLOOD MONEY , what happened to d President & Gov.security votes,blood suckers..?....DAVID
ReplyDeleteFinally he is out... EFCC what are you waiting for?
ReplyDelete