APC Defections Won’t Shield Corrupt Governors

The Federal Government has issued a firm warning that political defections to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) will not shield any governors or political officeholders from ongoing or future corruption investigations.

In a statement released on Friday through his media aide, Mr. Kamarudeen Ogundele, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, emphasized that the administration of President Bola Tinubu remains steadfast in its commitment to the rule of law and the anti-corruption drive, regardless of political affiliations or personal ties.

Fagbemi made the government’s stance clear while addressing a recent allegation by Mr. Paul Ibe, spokesperson to former Vice President and 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. Ibe had claimed that officials from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), as well as the Solicitor General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Justice, held meetings with a current and a former governor from the South-South region just 48 hours before their defection to the APC.

The AGF dismissed the allegation as entirely unfounded, reiterating that the fight against corruption would proceed unimpeded, and that the law would take its course—”no matter whose ox is gored.”

The AGF said his attention was drawn to the claim which Atiku’s aide made during an interview he granted on a national television.

Describing the allegation as contemptuous, the AGF stressed that though Mr. Ibe failed to mention the names of the defectors, “the discerning members of the public know those he could have been referring to,” he added.

“However, we wish to state categorically that the allegation is from the pit of hell, and at best, a figment of imagination of Mr Ibe.

“We know as a fact that the EFCC chairman and the Solicitor General of the Federation never met any serving or former governor as alleged by him.

“We appeal to the members of the public to disregard the insinuation as it was a feeble attempt to discredit President Bola Ahmed Tinubu led administration’s fight against corruption.

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration will continue to uphold the rule of law and will not falter in the fight against corruption no matter whose ox is gored,” the statement read.

Likewise, the EFCC, in a separate statement by its spokesperson, Mr. Dele Oyewale, maintained that Ibe’s claims that its Chairman, Ola Olukayode, held a secret meeting with an unnamed politician, was unfounded.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has firmly rejected allegations made by Paul Ibe, spokesperson for former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, dismissing them as baseless fabrications rooted in conjecture and political speculation.

In a statement addressing Ibe’s remarks during a television interview on May 22, the anti-graft agency criticized the claims as unfounded and made in poor taste. Ibe had alleged that the EFCC Chairman and the Solicitor General of the Federation met with a governor shortly before the latter’s defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC)—a claim the agency categorically denied.

The EFCC emphasized that its Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, has consistently maintained a non-partisan stance, and reiterated that the Commission operates independently of political influence. It called on the public to disregard what it described as a wholly imaginary narrative, asserting that no such meeting ever took place and that the accusation reflects a deliberate attempt to politicize the Commission’s work.

Africa Today News, New York