While Jackson Ude blogged from the US and took advantage of the Nigerian constitution to make claims he could get slammed for, one of the men in the thick of the allegation has however helped him out.
Ude, a PDP operative under former President Goodluck Jonathan recently dished dirt on V.P Yemi Osinbajo, saying he got a golden handshake of N4bn from suspended EFCC Chairman Ibrahim Magu.
Ude has no evidence, yet he would rather bluff.
“Since Osinbajo, the Star Boy, is denying, let’s have lawyers compel the Presidential Panel investigating Magu and the Police, to release the verbatim transcripts of Magu’s confessions. This is not about waving immunity,” he said in a follow-up to the allegation.
But July 9, the office of the VP also put out a rebuttal, and followed it with a letter Osinbajo’s lawyers delivered to IGP Ibrahim Adamu, urging the police to investigate the VP, and—if the allegation fails to hold—prosecute Ude.
The blogger has fired back.
“If he indeed wants to go to court, he needs to resign first, and sue me. He cannot be VP and be using state resources to intimidate the Judiciary. He cannot wave an immunity that he didn’t place.”
However, July 10, day 5 of the investigation, Magu returned to the panel which, again, grilled him allegedly on Ude’s allegation—as if the panel could believe a fluffy blogger alleging corruption with no evidence was worth their time. Or as if they expected Magu to actually said he gave out the billions to the V.P.
Magu however confirmed Osinbajo’s rebuttal, indicating the V.P should not be dragged into his ordeal.
“It is part of mudslinging. Please clear this,’ he was quoted as saying by the Nation.
“I do not have any control of such cash, I did not order the transfer of N4 billion to the VP or to anybody.”
It was further reported that Magu said the V.P never came up as subject when he got back to the panel.
Ude has not been the only one parroting wild allegation and false stories about Magu.
There were reports yesterday claiming he had gone rogue, and in the course of enjoying unrestricted power, had raided former President Abubakar Salami’s home, and had prevented former Defence Minister Theophilus Danjuma from buy a new private jet.
Both retired majors have denied having any brush with Magu.
On several occasions, Osinbajo has been roped into corruption allegations since 2015. The most recent was another PDP rabble-rouser Timi Frank who claimed the V.P got N90bn from the FIRS to bankroll the APC 2019 election.
Most of the defendants have always exploited the provision of the constitution that shields a president, his VP, governors, and their deputies from prosecution (going to court) while in office.
They must resign to challenge any allegation in court.