By Muhammed Shaeed
Former Senate President of Nigeria, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki has written to the Inspector General of Police over the allegation of defamation on his person by the Special Assistant, New Media to Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, Fafoluyi Micheal.
He, however, seeks a criminal prosecution of the SSA, as the allegation that Saraki sponsored assassins to eliminate the All Progressives Congress (APC) House of Representatives candidate for Ilorin West/Asa, Muktar Shagaya was false and malicious.
This was contained in a statement titled PETITION ON FALSE AND MALICIOUS INFORMATION PUBLISHED AGAINST DR. ABUBAKAR BUKOLA SARAKI, CON, BY FAFOLUYI OLAYINKA MICHAEL, signed and made available to the newsmen by Saraki’s Special Assistant on Security Matters, Taju Alabi.
The statement reads in full:
“In the said publication, Fafoluyi, who is a special assistant to the Governor of Kwara State on New Media, claimed that “Police overpowers Saraki’s assassin, Ojulari on the attempt (sic) to kill All Progressives Congress candidate for Ilorin West/Asa federal constituency, Muktar Shagaya at APC rally in Ilorin”. We have attached the print-out of the Facebook publication to this petition.
“This publication is not only false, malicious, and destructive, it is a deliberate attempt to malign the person of the former number three man in the country, expose him and his family to ridicule, and needlessly incite public hatred against his person and his family. This false information is criminal defamation that is capable of provoking the numerous supporters of Dr. Saraki in Kwara State, in particular, and Nigeria as a whole.
“To worsen the matter and expose the evil intention of Fafoluyi, Muktar Shagaya who he claimed to be the subject of a so-called attack has in another publication on the same Facebook denied the false claims by Fafoluyi. Mukhtar wrote on his FB page that “It has come to our attention that an assassination attempt was made on the life of Hon. Muktar Shagaya (APC candidate Asa/Ilorin-West) by thugs affiliated with the former Senate President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This is categorically untrue. We urge perpetrators of such fake news to cease and desist from trying to heat up the polity of the good people of Asa/Ilorin-West unnecessarily”.
“What this means is that Fafoluyi simply fabricated the falsehood that he published. Dr. Saraki is a responsible Nigerian who does not associate with any individual of shady character or anybody capable of assassinating or sponsoring the assassination of any individual. He is a God-fearing man who abhors violence or illegality of any type, form, or nature. This, he has demonstrated in the way he has kept his numerous supporters in check, even in the face of desperate and unwarranted provocation by elements or characters like Fafoluyi and other agents of the Kwara State government.
“Mr. CP, sir, it should also be noted that the publication under reference is not the first time that this same Fafoluyi and other acolytes or cohorts of his have defamed Dr. Saraki on radio, television, newspapers, and all social media platforms.
“Our prayer, therefore, is that the police should invite Mr. Fafoluyi to prove this grave allegation while the matter is taken before the court as a case of criminal defamation, in which the accused person will have the opportunity to either prove his claims or face the consequence of his action. We believe that if the Police do not move swiftly on this matter, particularly close to the election period, it may lead to public disturbance and heighten the tension in the state as we all prepare for the general elections in the next few weeks” he added
