Gyang Bere, Jos
A former Governor of Plateau State and Senator representing Plateau North, Jonah David Jang has accused Minister for Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, for masterminding his unlawful detention by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Jang in a press statement signed by his Media Consultant, Clinton Garuba, said since he wrote a letter to the Minister demanding for the retraction of his name among looters list or will seek redress in court, EFCC have illegally detained him for eight days on allegations that he had defended and freed.
“You would recall, that Senator Jonah Jang issued an ultimatum to Minister of Information Lai Mohammed stating his intention to seek legal redress if the Minister does not expunge the Senator’s name from his infamous looters list released some weeks ago wherein the Senator was said to have looted N12.5billion.
“Shortly after that, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related crimes Commission ICPC, in what was a curiously dramatic and braggadocios awakening, swung into action inviting the Senator over the same allegations he has generously given explanations to all along, leading to his eventual detention.
“As a man fondly referred to by many admirers as the Architect of Modern Plateau, for his transformational work in the State, he has consistently availed himself whenever occasion demands to give account of his meritorious service as Governor of Plateau State from 2007-2015, a period characterized by massive infrastructural development and giant feats in the socioeconomic lives of Plateau people.”
He said the desperation of APC Government to the continuous unlawful detained him at the EFCC after honouring their invitation will not deter him from doing what is right to the liberation of his people in the Middle Belt who are been killed on daily basis by Fulani herdsmen.
“A government renowned for using deodorants in the its fight against corruption within the ranks of its supporters, cronies, and hallelujah choristers, is not justified when it uses insecticides against Senator Jang and those like him who speak truth to power.
“For the avoidance of doubts, the man Jonah David Jang cannot be broken, dispirited, or intimidated. His resolve to be strong for his people is intact. His opinion against a government which allows the killing of innocents in the Middle-Belt is unchanged. His position against the transfer of ancestral lands from the people of the Middle-Belt to herdsmen for grazing reserves or colonies is emphatic.
“His criticism of the government and its totalitarian tendencies is unstoppable. Therefore, his persecution in the hands of the EFCC will not yield the intended result envisaged when the plot was orchestrated.”
Garuba said if EFCC failed to arraigned Jang in Court on Wednesday, they shall organize an extraordinarily massive protest in the Federal Capital Territory to demand for the immediate and unconditional release of the Senator.