The statement, by presidential spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati, said Mohammed was only attempting to turn the truth on its head
Browsing: Reuben Abati
But the opposite seems to be the case, especially with the current administration of President Goodluck Jonathan, in which several instances of press antagonism from the armed security operatives have assumed frightening dimension
Abati seems to be hiding under the veneer of a storm trooper ethic that seeks to crush true discussion and healthy dissent. If you challenge official wisdom, this junior mad dog is immediately let loose to craft a barking sermon laced with expletives
I subscribe to the fact that press freedom comes with it, its responsibility. However, if anyone feels aggrieved about anything published in the media, the person has the right to right a rejoinder or send a complaint to the Nigerian Press Council, created by the act of parliament or institute defamation suit like late Murtala Mohammed did
As a responsible government committed to providing good governance and protecting the rule of law, the rebuttal from the presidency was appropriate; yet its symbolism runs far deeper. It ordinarily ought to have motivated all concerned with or related to the process and issues contained therein, particularly the publishers and editors, to double check their claims, and where errors had been made, to quickly retract the story. This would have been in line with the ethics of professionalism, good conduct and unbiased reporting
A press conference in Lagos, this Thanksgiving Sunday, addressed by Alhaji Lai Mohammed continued this pattern when he alleged that the Federal Government was deliberately promoting policies that will plunge the nation into crisis with the objective of scuttling the 2015 elections. He tried to exploit real challenges confronting the nation by instilling fear in the populace through the use of unrelated events; hoping to use such patterns and trends to build a conspiratorial case. Like all conspiracies, the case made fell quickly like a pack of cards when confronted with the facts
Abati, in his reaction to the call by Obasanjo that the President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan administration should adopt the carrot and stick approach in resolving the Boko Haram issue, said that the position of the former president had changed so many times since the insurgency started