Senate President, Bukola Saraki has reacted to the statement credited to the Minister of Information and Culture, Alh Lai Mohammed over the 10m naira he (Saraki) donated to the victims of Offa robbery.
This is even as he dared him (Muhammed) to prove his claim that subsequent broadcasts of the Senate President’s syndicated Christmas morning interview were manipulated.
The minister had called out Saraki for lying that he donated N10 million to the victims of Offa Robbery.
In a statement signed by his special assistant on media and publicity, Yusuph Olaniyonu on Monday and made available to newsmen, Saraki called on Mohammed to respect the memories of the victims of the Offa robbery.
“After reading the laughable and entirely empty statement issued by the Minister today, we challenge him, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, to bring out the two recordings of the live transmission and the repeat broadcast to show the public where it is doctored.
“Just to be clear, the repeat of the interview was based on popular demand by Kwarans during some of the consultative meetings the Senate President had in the three Senatorial districts of Kwara State.
“Mr. Mohammed should be well-aware that this interview was aired live, hence, his insinuation that certain sections were subsequently doctored puts the reputation of the 5 radio stations that aired the interview and the 4 that aired the repeat in jeopardy. This also includes Harmony FM, an FRCN station that is under the Minister of Information’s supervision,” Olaniyonu said.
The Special Adviser also questioned the logic behind Mohammed’s assertion that the N10 million donated by Saraki was to aid the people who lost their goods during the inferno in Offa Market and that it was used in Ilorin.
“How possible can it be for something that was donated in Offa to be used in Ilorin? Additionally, Lai Mohammed should do the public a favour by telling the public what he has done or donated to alleviate the plight of the people of Offa at any time.
“If he is attacking Saraki for donating millions to the victims of a burnt market in Offa and not those who sustained injury during the robbery incident, what has he done at any time to help the people of that town since he became one of the ‘guest politicians’ in the state?” he queried.
Olaniyonu further challenged Lai Mohammed to stop his grandstanding about his political clout in Kwara, stating that the Minister’s popularity is entirely non-existent.
“Lai Mohammed keeps on grandstanding with false and baseless assertions of his entirely non-existent popularity. If he is as popular in Kwara as he claims, how did he perform in the 2003 polls as gubernatorial candidate?
“If he is indeed known and accepted in Kwara, why is it that his son is running for a House of Assembly seat in Lagos — and not in Kwara?”
Olaniyonu called on the Minister of Information to immediately desist from using the tragic loss of lives in the Offa Robbery as a political propaganda tool.
“If Lai Mohammed has any contrary evidence, we challenge him to go to court or end this blatant disrespect and disregard for the memories of the victims lost in the Offa Robbery incident,” Olaniyonu stated.
