Plateau commissioner dismisses Buhari’s anti-graft posture

Jang urges ex-Head of State to surrender

PLATEAU State Commissioner for Information and Communication, Honourable Muhammad Abubakar Badu, has challenged the anti-corruption claims of Maj.-General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) and tasked him to explain how two billion naira disappeared from the petroleum ministry when he was in charge.
       

 Speaking during a brief ceremony to mark the conferment of the honour of Ethics Ambassador on him by the Centre for Ethics and Self Value Orientation in his office, Muhammad said “war against corruption or anti-corruption crusade must be holistic.  He dismissed the APC presidential candidate’s claims and pronouncements about fighting corruption as “sheer pretence and electioneering gallery show,”, recalling that as minister of petroleum 

under the General Olusegun Obasanjo administration in the 1970s, the sum of two billion naira disappeared under his watch, and was traced to an aircraft arrested by the government of Idi Amin in Uganda.
 According to Muhammad, at that time, the Naira was stronger than the American dollar, and that translates as robbing Nigeria of vital development projects, especially as that government failed to account for the money up to this day.
        

  For discerning people to believe and subscribe to his anti-corruption political war cry, Muhammad has tasked Buhari to explain to the world how the money disappeared from the ministry’s coffers, and the diplomacy that resolved the controversy that led to the arrest of the aircraft carrying the cash in a Uganda airport.
        

 In as much as it is desirable to combat corruption in high places as a bane of national development, Muhammad said it was as much desirable that this trip to equity be embarked on by those with clean hands.

 On his part, Governor Jonah Jang has said that having given has President and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) two million votes in the 2011 election, the state thrives to do more by giving him about three million votes if possible.

  The governor was speaking at a women political rally organised by his wife Ngo Talatu Jang in support for Jonathan, the PDP standard bearer in the state, Senator Gyang Pwajok and other PDP candidates. The rally was to create sufficient awareness for women in the state to vote for the PDP candidates.

 Jang advised Buhari to surrender his presidential ambition having contested and failed severally.

  According to him: “The APC candidate has contested this presidency and this is the 4th time now. I think he should just surrender. He is a great Nigerian. He was a former Military Head of State, and we fought the civil war together. But Nigerians are simply saying ‘allow us.’ He should find out for himself why Nigerians are saying so.

  “I call on the people of Plateau State to give President Jonathan overwhelming support by voting for him to continue to do the good work he has started. He has the requisite experience to rule this nation.”

 Jang also noted that there are people who are bent on dividing the nation along tribal and religious line, “but we are saying no. I advocate that whoever is good enough to rule Nigeria be given the chance irrespective of wherever he comes from and whatever religion or tribe he belongs.”

 The rally witnessed an unprecedented large crowd of women from all the local governments of Plateau North. They all paid glowing tribute to the First Lady of the state, Ngo Talatu Jang, whom they described as a true mother.

A cross section of the women who spoke to journalists described Jang’s eight years of leadership as purposeful, and were therefore willing to throw their weight behind any candidate he advises them to support without fear of disappointment.