Thursday, September 22, 2016

If you touch Patience Jonathan, we will destroy Nigeria – NDPPVF

A group with alleged members in the oil and gas industry, the Niger Delta Peoples Professional Volunteer Force, NDPPVF, has threatened that there’d be hell to pay if former First Lady, Patience Jonathan, is arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.



The group, which made the threat in a statement issued on Wednesday, September 21, promised to bomb the headquarters of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC.

The group, NDPPVF, accused the anti-graft agency, EFCC, of witch-hunting Patience Jonathan and called on the EFCC to lift the No Debit Order imposed on her Skye Bank accounts.

The accounts contained more than $15m, but Goodluck Jonathan’s wife has since explained that the money was meant for her medical bills.

Last week, the EFCC filed money laundering charges against a Special Adviser to ex-President Jonathan on Domestic Affairs, Waripamowei Dudafa, whom the former first lady directed to open the accounts, Amajuoyi Briggs, a lawyer; and Damola Bolodeoku, a Skye Bank official.

On Tuesday, September 20, EFCC Chairman, Ibrahim Magu, also told reporters that Jonathan’s wife was under investigation.

In the statement, which was issued by spokesman of NDPPVF, Parkinson George-Amabo, the group warned Magu that investigating Patience could result into “bad blood, embarrassment and possible unrest in the Niger Delta”.

The group said it is not in support of corruption, but against the manner in which the agency is investigating Patience Jonathan who has had an “impressive and fortuitous pedigree”.

“As a matter of fact, the EFCC has launched a criminal investigation of Mrs. Jonathan and in the process, frozen her bank accounts domiciled with a Nigerian commercial bank without affording her opportunity to state her own side of the matter,” the statement read.

“Nobody is above the law. The NDPPVF does not support or condone corruption. If Mrs. Jonathan was found to be corrupt, we shall not hesitate to call for her prosecution.

“We, however, have a grouse with the modus operandi of Mrs. Jonathan’s investigation, given her status as the wife of a former deputy governor, former governor, former vice-president, former acting president and finally, former president. She is perhaps, the only Nigerian woman – dead or alive – with such an impressive and fortuitous pedigree; which accounts for why the EFCC needs to thread with caution.

“Recently, there have been calls on the attorney-general of the federation as well as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to arrest and prosecute the former First Lady for alleged money laundering.

“We shall simultaneously bomb the 4 wings of the NNPC Towers the day it is announced that MRS. PATIENCE GOODLUCK JONATHAN has been arrested by the EFCC.”

The group added that before her husband emerged as vice-president in 2007, the EFCC investigated Mrs. Jonathan and cleared of any wrongdoing”.

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