Gov's N3B Donation To GEJ Not True – Indabawa; Group Urges Investigations

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan 05, (THEWILL) – The allegation that six PDP state governors have donated a mandatory N500 million naira each to boost the Presidential campaign of President Goodluck Jonathan has been described as false by the Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, who allegedly wrote a letter acknowledging the donation.

But a pressure group, Civil Rights Congress-Nigeria has called the donation ‘an insult to the intelligence of Nigerians and a clear breach of the stipulations of the Electoral Act.’ It called on anti-graft agencies to investigate the allegation.

However, a document circulated in the local media dated December 06, 2010 had alleged that Bauchi, Benue, Cross River, Ebonyi, Katisna and Ogun State governments donated N500 million naira each to boost the President’s campaign chest.

But the alleged author of the document, Dr. Akilu Sani Indabawa has denied that he authored the document and alleged that it was fabricated to ridicule President Goodluck Jonathan.

The Special Adviser in a statement today said: "This is to strongly repudiate a report in sections of media today alleging that six state governors have each contributed N500 million to the campaign of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan. "The report is entirely false and fabricated to ridicule Mr. President in the eyes of the Nigerian public. The forged letter attempts to criminally portray Mr. President and the six mentioned governors, who incidentally are co-ordinators of the President’s campaign in the zones, as treasury looters.

"I have officially written to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, reporting the matter and seeking adequate legal redress. Forgery is a criminal offence in our laws, and this matter must be pursued to a logical conclusion," Dr. Indabawa said.

Meantime, the Civil Rights Congress in a statement by its President, Shehu Sani has condemned the alleged donations describing it as “ridiculous, insensitive, arrogant, audacious, immoral, scandalous and callous indifference to the sufferings of their people.”

It said it is unfathomable that at a time most of these donor states are faced with lingering problems of uncompleted projects, unpaid and underpaid workers and infrastructural decay, the governors of these states can still out of opportunism and sycophancy squeeze out such sums to oil the campaign machinery of President Jonathan. The group also added that the Governors have by their donations deprived their people adequate funding to vital areas such as health, education, environment, housing and security.

“We call on ICPC, EFCC and INEC to as a matter of urgency intervene and investigate these governors and their source of these funds. We believe that this is a challenge to the integrity and courage of the leaderships of the three federal government agencies,” the group added.