Fayose - Why Mr President Buhari Sacked Babachir, Oke

Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose

Ayodele Fayose Ekiti State Governor has described the sacking of the suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, and the Director General, National Intelligence Agency, Ayodele Oke, by President Muhammadu Buhari as an afterthought.

The governor said the indicted officials and others still in Buhari’s government should be handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for thorough investigation and prosecution .

Speaking through his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, Fayose said, “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.”

“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’s enemies.”

“Once again, Nigerians have proved that the power of the president is not greater than that of the people who elected him.”

“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 a panel to investigate corruption allegations involving his men and reluctantly sacking a few of them because of public outcry.”

Maintaining that Buhari was aiding and abetting corruption, Fayose said apart from prosecuting the sacked officials, the report of the panel that investigated them should be made public.

“Nigerians are interested in the full details of the report on the $43m 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 $25bn contracts without following due process against the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Dr. Maikanti Baru.

“Nigerians are interested in the report of the panel that looked into the Department of State Service 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, Ikoyi, Lagos.