Ekiti State Governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose has described President
Muhammadu Buhari’s sack of the suspended Secretary to the Government
of the Federation SGF, Babachir Lawal, and the Director General,
National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ayodele Oke as face-saving and an
afterthought, noting that; “The President only acted because of the
outcry of Nigerians, especially over the fraudulent reinstatement of
the former Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Pension Reforms,
Mr Abdullahi Maina.”
The governor, who said the indicted and sacked SGF, NIA Director
General and others still in Buhari’s government should be handed over
to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for thorough
investigation and prosecution, added that; “Enough of using probe
panels to shield people accused of corruption in Buhari’s government.
Rather, they should be arrested, detained and prosecuted by the EFCC
as being done to others perceived as the President enemies.”
He congratulated Nigerians whose resistance force the President to
act, saying; “Once again, Nigerians have proved that the power of the
president is not greater than that the people who elected him.”
Reacting to the President’s sack of Lawal and Oke through his Special
Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka,
Governor Fayose said; “What Nigerians expected from a President who
rode to power on the basis of integrity is a total cleansing of his
government, not setting up panel to investigate corruption allegations
involving his men and reluctantly sacking a few of them because of
public outcry.”
Maintaining that President Buhari was aiding and abetting corruption,
the governor said; “As far as I am concerned, sacking the SGF and NIA
Director General is just an afterthought and it is not enough. Let
them be handed over to the EFCC for prosecution just like other
Nigerians that they have accused of corruption.
“Apart from prosecuting the sacked officials, Nigerians are interested
in the full details of the report on the $43 million discovered in an
apartment at Osbourne Towers, Ikoyi, Lagos. The report should be made
public.
“They also want to know what happened to the Minister of State for
Petroleum Resources Ibe Kachikwu’s allegation of award of $25 billion
contracts without following due process against the Group Managing
Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC);
Dr. Maikanti Baru.
“Nigerians are interested in the report of the panel that looked into
the Department of State Service (DSS) report that indicted Acting
Chairman of EFCC, Ibrahim Magu of corruption. They want to know why
the former Chairman of EFCC, Ibrahim Lamorde, who was accused of
corruption by the Senate, removed from office unceremoniously and
declared wanted is now the Commissioner of Police in charge of the
Special Fraud Unit (SFU), Ikoyi, Lagos.
“Also, the people are interested in the rationale behind the
appointment of Ahmed Gambo Saleh; the Supreme Court Registrar who was
indicted and put on trial for alleged over N2 billion fraud as the
Secretary of the National Judicial Council (NJC) and the Corruption
and Financial Crime Cases Trial Monitoring Committee.
“Most importantly, Nigerians are not carried away by the sack of
Babachir Lawal and Oke. Rather, they want to know what President
Buhari has done to those behind the fraudulent reinstatement of Maina
since report on the reinstatement was submitted last week Tuesday as
directed by the President.
“Not until President Buhari fumigates his own bedroom and rid it of
corruption, it will remain in the mindset of the people that President
Buhari is aiding and abetting corruption, and only acts when it
becomes difficult for him to close his ears to the outcry of
Nigerians.”
