Alhaji Lai Mohammed
The All Progressives Congress, the Nigerian Bar Association and the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties have demanded a probe of the audio file which purportedly captures the voices of Peoples Democratic Party leaders plotting to rig the June 2, 2014 elections with officers of the Nigerian Army in Ekiti.
The recording, which was on Sahara Reporters, purportedly captured the voices of the Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, Senator Iyiola Omisore and a former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, in a meeting where they allegedly gave directives to one Brig.-Gen. Momoh to favour the PDP.
The APC, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, on Sunday, wondered why the military had been silent over the tape which has been in circulation for over two weeks.
The recording, which was on Sahara Reporters, purportedly captured the voices of the Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, Senator Iyiola Omisore and a former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, in a meeting where they allegedly gave directives to one Brig.-Gen. Momoh to favour the PDP.
The APC, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, on Sunday, wondered why the military had been silent over the tape which has been in circulation for over two weeks.
The party also berated President Goodluck Jonathan for dismissing the tape as fake without even investigating it.
The statement read, “If the government officials and politicians whose voices were heard in the tape are not interested in clearing their names, what of the military institution that was dragged into the show of shame? Has the integrity of the military not been compromised by the alleged role of a General and hundreds of his troops in the rigging saga?”
The party said the inconsistency of the Federal Government’s response to the whole saga has exposed its underbelly and made it more urgent for a forensic investigation of the tape to be carried out.
‘’First, those whose voices were heard on the tape rushed to deny there was any such meeting. Later, after they were confronted with a preponderance of evidence, they started owning up one by one even though they all denied the meeting was about rigging. Of course, Nigerians know better.
Meanwhile, in an interview with one of our correspondents in Ado Ekiti, the state Chairman of the CNPP, Tunji Ogunlola, described the tape as a “very embarrassing occurrence and it is condemnable.”
He added, “The National Assembly should investigate the matter. If such happened during a governorship election, it means it might be worse during a presidential election. Those allegedly involved should be summoned.”
Also speaking on the issue, the Chairman of the NBA, Ado Ekiti branch, Dr. Foluke Dada, in a separate interview with one of our correspondents, also backed the calls for investigation of the tape.
“We can’t confirm the authenticity of the audio, so we have to be cautious in our reaction. But it is a serious allegation that relevant authorities must investigate.”
BY KAMARUDEEN OGUNDELE AND ENIOLA AKINKUOTU
