EFCC’s propaganda may trigger crisis in Nigeria —NNSG

 Nigerian National Summit Group, NNSG, has kicked
against what it described as the growing pattern of self-
serving propaganda tactics being deployed by
government officials and organs, warning that it could
trigger social unrest nationwide.

In a statement by its Executive Secretary, Mr. Tony.

Uranta, NNSG threw its weight behind President
Muhammadu Buhari’s anti-corruption campaign, urging
that the war must be non-selective and follow the rule of
law, citing the recent losses by the Federal Government
in four major court cases as proof that trial by media
cannot be a substitute for thorough investigations and
properly prosecuted cases.

He said: “Trial by media, including the recent propaganda
deployments by the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission, EFCC, have not only been too loosely
woven around unverified facts, but have even
calculatedly encouraged libelous falsehoods, while
inflaming public passion.”

The group’s scribe noted that “the rush, by the EFCC,
for example, to the media, the putative discoveries of
humongous amounts of allegedly looted monies, without
first ascertaining their ownership, smacks of
professional impropriety, especially considering how
many now obviously innocent individuals have had their
names and integrity at least passively impugned via
nigh-libelous association with said sums, by the anti-
corruption agency.”

.             EFCC operatives

“Without attempting to hold brief for Ms. Mo Abudu, Mrs.

Esther Nnamdi-Ogbue, or Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, one can
guess that unless the EFCC speedily offers them very
public apologies, the stigma created by the media
outcry, that wrongly linked them to the apartment in
which the funds were discovered, may never be lived
down by them. And, now that we learned that the NIA
had immediately claimed ownership of the apartment
and funds, one wonders in whose interest it was to
ignore this and still allow for the growth of malicious
public and media speculation.

Even now, the uncalled-for
publicity as to who the real owners of the apartments in
the complex is, is distasteful and dangerous,” he said.

Calling on government agencies and the media be
careful, he said “In future, before carelessly broadcasting
sensational information, so as not to become the cause
of a violent national social upheaval by misled Nigerians
who are already on edge and frustrated with the status
quo during this recession.

“The NNSG further calls on members of the Nigerian
public and all law enforcement agents to also be on the
alert for criminals that may attempt to impersonate the
security agencies so as to gain forced, or coerced,
illegal entry into innocent individuals’ homes, offices, and
other premises.

“The NNSG gives notice that it will deploy the Freedom
of Information, FOI, Act to demand the EFCC
immediately obeys Mr. President’s instruction, given a
couple of weeks ago, that the anti-graft body tread the
natural path of transparency and accountability, by
urgently producing an Interim Audit Report of all monies
recovered by the agency, to date, beginning from the
tenure of the former EFCC Chairman, Mr. Ibrahim
Lamorde.”