Stop peddling politically-motivated rumours, group warns minister

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has warned the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed and the Nigerian military to stop peddling politically-motivated rumors, stressing that such claim was a political blackmail.

The Non-Governmental Organisation gave the warning on Thursday while reacting to the claims by the minister that the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP, 2019 presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar was plotting to overthrow the President Muhammadu Buhari government.

Mohammed had on Wednesday  alleged that the PDP and Abubakar were plotting to take-over the government. He further described their alleged actions as an act of treason.

But, Abubakar through his media aide, Paul Ibe, described the allegations as lies.

Reacting, HURIWA insisted that the constitution permits the opposition to democratically and constructively paint ruling party in bad light before the electorate so as to win election.

A statement by the National Coordinator of HURIWA, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and the National Media Affairs Director, Miss. Zainab Yusuf, said it was “fatally erroneous for politicians or the military to interpret litigation by political opposition or criticisms as attempts to unseat the government.”

The pro-democracy group also called on the government and “heads of the security forces to work out effective strategies of quality intelligence gathering so as to combat the ongoing ever expanding insecurity, banditry and kidnappings all across the country.”

HURIWA said it is “disingenuous and discreditable that politicians under the cover of cabinet level offices have penetrated and corrupted the hierarchies of the military to begin to dish out half-baked tales by moonlight accusing political opposition of sponsoring violent crimes.

“It was disgraceful that government has to resort to cheap blackmail as a way to explain away the gross irresponsibility that it has demonstrated in such a callous manner that government is appearing overwhelmed by the dare-devil activities of hoodlums, armed Fulani herdsmen, kidnappers and other forms of sophisticated criminals roaming the streets of Nigeria freely unleashing violence of unprecedented scale.”

HURIWA also faulted the claim made by both politicians by the Minister of Information and the spokesman of the military that losers during the last election are behind banditry.

“We think that this scheme to apparently rope in political opponents into some phantom coup is cheap blackmail which has attracted global opprobrium for Nigeria from the rest of the civilized world who would think that Nigeria is still a banana republic administered by trigger – happy and gun-wielding dictators. Government officials must behave and speak in a dignified manner please,” HURIWA added.