The Minister of Information and
Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has raised the alarm that some armed mercenaries
from Niger Republic have been contracted to attack top government
functionaries, including state governors across the North-west between now and
the general elections.
The Minister said that the
opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, having realised that their fortunes
have dwindled badly ahead of the polls, are desperately orchestrating
widespread violence with a view to truncating the elections.
He said the opposition party was
triggering a constitutional crisis that could snowball into the establishment
of an interim government.
Mohammed stated this when he
addressed a press conference in Abuja on Monday.
He said, “As you are aware,
Nigeria goes to the polls just 27 days from now.
“However, the Federal Government
is in possession of credible intelligence to the effect that widespread
violence being orchestrated by the opposition is threatening the 2019 general
elections.
“You have definitely seen the
massive and warm reception that President Muhammadu Buhari has been receiving
across the country, compared to the teeming crowds that have been attending the
opposition rallies.
“Having realized that their
fortunes have dwindled badly ahead of the polls, the desperate opposition is
orchestrating widespread violence with a view to truncating the elections, thus
triggering a constitutional crisis that could snowball into the establishment
of an interim government.
“Before you accuse the government
of crying wolf, let me tell you, gentlemen, that we have credible intelligence
that armed bandits and Boko Haram insurgents have been mobilized to engage in
massive attacks and other acts of violence in several states across the
country, including Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Benue, Kano, Kaduna, Nasarawa,
Plateau, Taraba and Zamfara.
“The Benue-based armed criminal
group, led by Terwase AKWAZA, also known as Gana, has been commissioned to
strike soft targets in Benue, Nasarawa, and Taraba States. In Kano State, a
group of notorious miscreants have been mobilized by some prominent opposition
leaders to provoke massive chaos before, during and after the elections.
“There is also an international
dimension to the evil plan. Some armed mercenaries from Niger Republic have
been contracted to attack top government functionaries, including state
governors, across the North-west between now and the elections.
“The Federal Government is taking
every possible measure to counter these evil plans by unpatriotic anarchists
and ensure the success of the 2019 General Elections.
“The Administration’s commitment
to a credible, free, fair and peaceful elections is unshaken. After all,
according to the online encyclopedia – Wikipedia – elections have been the
usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated since the
17th century.
“We appeal to all Nigerians to be
vigilant in the days ahead. We also appeal to the media to help in sensitizing
members of the public on these observed threats, which are capable of
disrupting the elections. The punchline of our long running campaign on
security – if you see something, say something – remains relevant, perhaps even
more, at this time.
“Finally, all the relevant
agencies under the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture will work
together to ensure that Nigerians are alerted to the dangers posed to the
forthcoming elections by unscrupulous, unpatriotic and desperate characters who
will not hesitate to destabilize the country if they cannot achieve their
inordinate ambition.”
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Lier Mohammed, this is hate speech o.
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