The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, has said President Muhammadu Buhari has no agenda to end Islamic terrorism in Nigeria.
HURIWA made the remark while accusing Buhari of betraying his constitutional oath over his stance on Isa Pantami, Minister of Communications and Digital Planning.
The frontline rights advocacy group was reacting to claims by former Director of the Department of State Services, DSS, Dennis Amachree that Buhari neglected intelligence on the affiliation of Pantami to Taliban and Al-Qaeda before naming him into his cabinet.
HURIWA stated this in a statement by its National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, and National Media Affairs Director, Miss Zainab Yusuf.
According to HURIWA: “The disclosure by a respected erstwhile Assistant Director of the Department of State Services, DSS, Dennis Amachree that President Muhammadu Buhari discountenanced and neglected intelligence on the affiliation of Sheikh Ibrahim Ali Pantami to Taliban and Al-Quaeda before naming him into his cabinet has shown that President Muhammadu Buhari has no respect for his constitutional oath of office.
“Besides, the decision by the Federal Executive Council not to discuss the swirling controversy over the confession by the Minister of Communication and Digital economy that he once supported the teachings of Taliban and Al- Quaeda regarded as leaders of the global terror networks, is to put it mildly, unconscionable, wicked, insensitive, and irrational.
“The failure of President Muhammadu Buhari to sack the Communications Minister even after he confessed to have backed global terrorists that bombed the USA on September 11th 2001, shows that the government has no agenda to end Islamic terrorism in Nigeria.”
The rights group also accused Buhari of desecrating the Nigerian Constitution by undermining a strong intelligence against the nomination of someone who had previously held public opinions that are extremists and are in support of global Jihadist movement.
HURIWA said Buhari had sworn to an oath to do the following:”…that I will not allow my personal interest to influence my official conduct or my official decisions; that I will to the best of my ability preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria…”
The group said the President by “choosing to overlook such an important leaks and well grounded intelligence on Sheikh Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami and proceeded to appoint him into a very strategic national office as minister of Communications and Digital economy is an unambiguous message that the Government abridged initio has a sinister motive and never intended to end the state of insecurity compounded by the attacks of armed Islamic terrorists and herdsmen.”
