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The Action Congress (AC) has said the denial by Justice Minister and Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Michael Aondoakaa, that the government never said it would not probe former President Olusegun Obasanjo, signals the depth of the confusion in the Yar'Adua administration.
The Action Congress (AC) has said the denial by Justice Minister and Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Michael Aondoakaa, that the government never said it would not probe former President Olusegun Obasanjo, signals the depth of the confusion in the Yar'Adua administration.
'There is no doubt that this government is on autopilot, with no one in charge,'' AC said in a statement issued in Abuja on Tuesday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.
The party expressed shock that a statement made by President Yar'Adua's Spokesman, Olusegun Adeniyi, in a newspaper interview last week, could be so easily disclaimed by the Minister, when details of the interview are still too fresh.
The party therefore said it has decided to quote a portion of the interview, where the Spokesman ruled out any probe of the former President.
While reacting to a question on the clamour for a probe of the Obasanjo Administration, Adeniyi had said such a probe panel "disposition does not go in tandem with his (President's) philosophy of government. For a man who has been preaching due process and the rule of law, the idea of a probe is clearly out of the question.''
Adeniyi added: 'I don't know what President Obasanjo did that would warrant a probe panel being set up for people to now go and be making allegations that cannot stand up in a court of law so he could be humiliated publicly. I know the former president is not popular with the media so I can understand the basis for the call. But let's be fair to the former President. While he is not perfect as none of us is, he did his very best for this country and doesn't deserve the current harassment."
AC said the Minister's denial had raised a serious question of who speaks for the President, and whether the public should rely only on statements made by the president.
The party also said it took serious issues with the Minister on his insinuation that its (AC) reaction to the Obasanjo no-probe story was a mere conjecture, adding that as a responsible opposition party, AC acts only on facts, not fiction.
"We have engaged in a constructive criticism of this administration, and we will continue with that trend, in the interest of our country and its people. We
don't engage in rumours. We deal with facts,'' it added