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| Mohammed |
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has condemned the obvious attempt
by the PDP-led Federal Government, working with some members of the
National Assembly, to cover up the smuggling of 9.3 million US dollars
to South Africa on a private plane, saying the cover-up plans will
fail because the issues involve transcend Nigeria.
In a statement issued in Lagos on Thursday by its National Publicity
Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed and sent to SHOWBIZPLUSng, the party said the cover-up attempt
manifested clearly at the House of Representatives on Tuesday, when a top PDP lawmaker curiously refused to entertain a debate
on a motion seeking a probe of the issue that has further ridiculed
Nigeria in the global community.
It said the refusal becomes even more suspicious
amid allegations that some members of the House has each received
$50,000 bribe to quash the motion.
APC however hailed its members in the House of Representatives for
staging a walk-out to protest against the inexplicable decision not to
allow the issue to be debated on the floor of the House, saying by
their actions, they have aligned with the majority of Nigerians who
are eager to get to the bottom of how such a huge amount of money
could be smuggled into another country by the Nigerian authorities,
despite being fully aware of the limitation on the amount of money
that can be taken into any country.
The party said while the Senate has already launched a probe into the
issue, Nigerians would have preferred that the probe is done openly,
instead of behind closed doors, so there won't be any shade of doubt
about the transparency of the investigation. It however expressed the
hope that the Senate will do a thorough job to unravel the
circumstances surrounding the cash smuggling gate.
''It is shocking that those who were elected by the people will fail
to act in the interest of the people. But then we in the APC are not
really surprised at this development, going by the antecedents of the
Jonathan Administration and his party, the PDP. Thank goodness,
everyday the PDP and the government it has sired at the centre are
showing why they should not be voted back into office,'' it said.
The party insisted that the Jonathan Administration and all concerned
must come clean on the circumstances surrounding the ferrying of the
huge funds to South Africa, including why a government that has spent
millions of naira to promote a cashless policy decided to transport 90
blocks of $100,000 each to another country in violation of that
country's laws.
''The resort to 'procedural error' is not enough to explain this
irresponsible and illegal action, neither is it enough to explain why
a duly-constituted government will behave like a rogue government or
even like insurgents who will be shopping for arms in the open market.
''Fortunately for Nigerians, South Africa's National Prosecuting
Authority (NPA) has said the issue is still under criminal
investigation, meaning all attempts to sweep the scandal under the
carpet, as the Jonathan Administration is used to doing, will fail,''
it said.
APC called on all well-meaning Nigerians as well as Civil Society
Organizations to ensure that the circumstances surrounding this
scandal are unraveled in the interest of Nigeria and her people.
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