• Flays Pastors’ Stance On Anti-graft War
• Urges Media Cooperation
EDO State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole, has again defended President Muhammadu Buhari’s war against corruption, saying critics deliberately shut their eyes to happenings in recent years when the country’s endowment was shared among few individuals and their cronies.
Stressing that without drastic action, it would be difficult for the country to reclaim its glorious past, he wondered why those crying foul chose to keep silent when many wrongdoings were being carried out under former President Goodluck Jonathan.
“When my helicopter was stopped while going to Ekiti State, as a governor with immunity…I was stopped by a low-level military officer from flying to Ekiti because my purpose was to campaign. I didn’t quite hear pastors protesting on my behalf. When Rotimi Amaechi, former Rivers State governor, was detained by a Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, and they moved tanks to Government House, heaven didn’t fall,” he said.
According to the governor, the good news, today, is that the country has a President with enormous political will, who is determined to get the job done.
Oshiomhole spoke as chairman at a dinner held Friday night by the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), in honour of Femi Adesina and Garba Shehu, recently appointed by the President as Special Adviser and Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, respectively.
The Edo governor said it was wrong for anybody to expect Buhari not to beam his anti-corruption searchlight on men and women in the administration of former President Jonathan, stressing that cries of selectiveness on the fight against graft were uncalled for.
Oshiomhole, who represented the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Odigie-Oyegun, said: “They are serving a President who appreciates that these problems have to be confronted head on; the President who boldly told the world that the issue of corruption, if it is not killed, will kill us. And since we don’t want to die, we have to kill corruption.
“But the forces behind corruption are powerful. Some are visible and some are not. They are rich men and women who have means. Many are even billionaires in dollars and euros.
“Now, where are the forces that will queue behind the President to confront the drivers of corruption? As you can see, people are already asking questions about due process. People are asking questions about selectivity, and so on.
“And it will be the job of Shehu and Femi to remind people that if you managed a house for 16 years and members of the community believed that the house has not been properly managed and that the reason for the mismanagement is that some people willfully…including resorting to corrupt practices, you can only deal with those in that house, the people who had responsibility for managing the house.
“So, when you select those people and deal with them, of course, it is selective. You can only select from among those who are involved in crime. Editors will help to take this to our people.”
