The federal government has launched an
investigation on the possible involvement of former
President Goodluck Jonathan with the spate of
bombings that have crippled the country’s oil
industry and affected itspower generation
capabilities.
investigation on the possible involvement of former
President Goodluck Jonathan with the spate of
bombings that have crippled the country’s oil
industry and affected itspower generation
capabilities.
Credible intelligence sources have told Daily Trust
that a hushed up investigation is already underway
to establish the level of involvement of Mr Jonathan
in the series of explosions affecting the country’s
oil producing infrastructure that has left the country
unable to produce nearly a third of its 2.2 million
barrels of crude oil per day.
This situation has left the government unable to
implement its budget of 6 trillion Naira that was
predicated on its agreed quota level and is further
confounded by low crude oil price.
Nigeria’s Finance Minister, Kemi Adeosun has since
declared that Nigeria is technically in recession.
There has been an earlier allegation by the militant
group, the Movement for the Emancipation of the
Niger Delta (MEND) that the former President is
complicit in the bombing of oil installations but
which he denied.
Daily Trust gathered that suspicion of the former
President’s involvement with activities of militants
in the oil producing Niger Delta region was further
strengthened after it emerged that one of the groups
that threatened to declare a Niger Delta republic
was dissuaded from doing so by Mr Jonathan.
According to a source familiar with the matter, the
sabotage of oil and power installations was part of
what he called the former President’s plan B after
he lost the last general elections to President
Muhammadu Buhari and is meant to discredit the
present administration.
The source added that the ultimate aim of Mr
Jonathan is to use his possible intercession with
those responsible for the disruptions in the oil and
power installations to stop investigations and
possible trial of himself and his wife over corruption
matters.
Speaking to Daily Trust on phone last night, the
Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai
Mohammed, said he was not aware that the former
president was being investigated by security
agencies over allegations linking him to the spate
of bombings by militants in the Niger Delta region.
He however said that “these allegations have
refused to go away, and those making the
allegations are not backing out. So I will not be
surprised if the security agencies show interest in it,
but I am not aware.”
The former president could not be reached for
comment on the matter yesterday, neither was his
media aide, Mr. Ikechukwu Eze.
However, one of Mr. Jonatan’s former aides who
preferred not to be named said the former president
had earlier this month denied such allegation when
it was made by MEND.
Jonathan’s statement issued by Mr Eze in Abuja on
August 7, denied he was a sponsor of NDA [Niger
Delta Avengers].
He rather countered that the group’s hidden agenda
was to kill him.
It will be recalled that Niger Delta militants had at
various times before the elections vowed that they
would make Nigeria ungovernable if Mr. Jonathan
lost his party’s nomination or if he was defeated by
Buhari.
The most publicised threat was made by top
militant leaders at a meeting in Bayelsa Government
House. At that meeting militants leaders such as
Asari Dokubo and Tompolo threatened to declare
war on Nigeria if Jonathan should lose the election.
They took the decision at a meeting attended by the
Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta
Affairs, and chairman of Amnesty Implementation
Committee, Kingsley Kuku; Bayelsa state Governor,
Seriake Dickson; President General of Ijaw Youth
Council, Udengs Eradiri and Victor Ben Ebikabowei,
aka, Boy Loaf.
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