APC Clarifies Statement On Criticism Of Boko Haram, Ansaru Proscription

APC-Logo1The All Progressives Congress (APC) has maintained that a former Aviation Minister, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, not only lied but distorted facts to reach a biased conclusion on the party’s comments concerning the proscription of Boko Haram and other terrorist groups by the federal government

In a statement issued in Abuja yesterday by its national publicity secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, APC also said Fani-Kayode’s emotional response to an earlier statement by the party failed to wash off the thick mud he splashed on himself when he returned to his vomit, repudiated everything he ever said he stood for and made himself available to be used to castigate the opposition on the altar of glaring exigency.

It said, however, that in the true spirit of the party’s belief in dwelling on issues rather than personalities, it had decided not to engage the ex-minister in a war of words but to simply set the record straight for the sake of posterity, thus exposing Fani-Kayode for who he truly is: a man of no steady principles.

While affirming that the now defunct Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, which joined forces with other parties to form the APC had on June 9, 2013, criticised the proscription of Boko Haram and Ansaru, Mr. Mohammed said the criticism was based on certain aspects of the proscription order, which stifled the press and violated the fundamental human rights of Nigerians.

According to him: “What the statement means is that in as much as the FG may have done a desirable thing in proscribing the terrorist groups, a section of the proscription order violates the constitution by stifling the press and tampering with the fundamental human rights of Nigerians”.

He said the party then quoted that offensive section of the Proscription Order as Section 5 (1), which prescribes a term of imprisonment of no fewer than 20 years for any person supports terrorism.

“We said ‘support’, as defined by the order, includes ‘incitement to commit a terrorist act through the Internet, or any electronic means or through the use of printed materials or through the dissemination of terrorist information’.

“We said this section is in conflict with Chapter II Section 22 of the Nigeria constitution which says ‘The press, radio, television and other agencies of the mass media, shall at all times be free to uphold the fundamental objectives contained in this chapter and uphold the responsibility and accountability of the government to the people.’

“We said by stifling the press, the order is abridging a part of the fundamental human rights guaranteed every citizen under Chapter Four of the Nigerian Constitution in Section 39 (1), which states thus: ‘Every person shall be entitled to freedom of expression including freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart ideas and information”, the APC spokesman said.

Mohammed noted that any educated person, who interprets the statement as a condemnation of the proscription itself, was acting out of deliberate mischief.

2 COMMENTS

  1. My disquite with LAI Moh’d is that he always behave as if God appointed him a deputy incharge of Nigeria. He does’nt agree that other have the benefit of hindsight on most typical Nigerian issues.Fani-kayode has right to express himself on any of the disturbing Nigerian based on his own peculiar sentiment.