The detention of the former Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has been condemned by Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
Atiku in a statement, Tuesday on his Facebook page, stated that the EFCC is after the former Governor because he is an Opposition member and blasted the President Bola Tinubu-led administration for coarsing oppositional leaders into the ruling party
Recall that Tambuwal was detained by the EFCC on Monday for alleged financial impropriety, and former Imo State Governor Emeka Ihedioha was invited due to suspicions of corruption during his brief term in office.
However, Atiku’s claim says otherwise. He stated, “The only reason the EFCC has detained the former Governor of Sokoto State, Senator Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, is because he is a member of the opposition Coalition. It is a continuation of the Tinubu-led administration’s agenda to harass, intimidate, and decimate the opposition.
“The reality unfolding before us today is that the Tinubu administration, as with other aspects, has objectified the fight against corruption as a political tool to coerce opposition leaders into the ruling party.
“We are living witnesses to a growing trend where the state and its operators have assumed the roles of a bully by making corruption and the fight against it a political agenda.
“The reality unfolding before us today is that the Tinubu administration, as with other aspects, has objectified the fight against corruption as a political tool to coerce opposition leaders into the ruling party.
“We are living witnesses to a growing trend where the state and its operators have assumed the roles of a bully by making corruption and the fight against it a political agenda.
“Certainly, that is not the objective for which I worked hard during our administration to create the EFCC.”
Atiku stressed that while fighting corruption needs everyone’s support, using it as a political weapon must be condemned by civil society and Nigeria’s international partners.
The statement read in part, “It is as though today, anyone who associates with the opposition is a target for phantom corruption allegations and, it is as though, as soon as they are coerced into the political agenda of President Tinubu, their ‘sins’ are forgiven.
“That, definitely, is not how to build institutions. That, certainly, is not how to fight the monster of corruption. Indeed, such tendencies provide the stimulant for corruption to thrive
“We have seen how the EFCC has been used to empty opposition state governors into the ruling party, and the tea party is not about to end anytime soon.
“While the genuine fight against corruption is a matter that requires the total support of all Nigerians, the objectification of it as a political agenda should be roundly condemned by all in civil society spaces and friends of Nigeria in the international community.
We have in recent times witnessed the use of anti-corruption agencies in coercing political leaders into the ruling party. Our assurance to Nigerians is that we would never succumb to this anti-democratic machinations of railroading our people into a one-party dictatorship”. -AA
What do you think about Atiku’s stance on Tambuwal’s detention?
