Rotimi Amaechi, a former transportation minister, has raised the alarm over plots to fund a smear campaign of calumny and lies against him.
Amaechi, in a statement on Thursday, June 27, 2019, described the plot as “deceitful and misleading”.
The statement, by his media office, reads: “We know that attempts are being made to peddle all sorts of fictitious, misleading and concocted stories, distorted and manipulated documents that would smudge the image and cast aspersions on the character, integrity and high morals of Amaechi, an astute and accomplished public servant.
“The deceitful plot and plan, and executors of the ominously-funded campaign, is to tarnish the towering status and do as much damage as possible to the character and reputation of Amaechi in the hearts, minds and eyes of the public, using both traditional and new media.
“One aspect of the reprehensible conspiracy is to unscrupulously drag the name of Amaechi and a member of his family into the internal affairs and operations of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, in a manner that is designed and intended to bring disrepute and opprobrium to his character and reputation. There are other aspects and dimensions to the plot to rubbish Amaechi’s image.
“In respect to the NDDC, the defamation campaigners intend to create, make and push to the public space all sorts of speculative and baseless allegations against Amaechi; from the ridiculous, to the puerile and completely bizarre stories, backed with distorted, phony and fake documents. For clarity, we state emphatically, that Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi is not involved in any way, in the management and operations of the NDDC.”
Amaechi said he decided to alert the public of the hawking presence and devious plots of the operation destroy Amaechi campaigners.
The former governor notified and pleaded with traditional and social media practitioners to be wary of the insidious shenanigans of the purveyors of fake news that was solely intended to deceive the public and destroy his sterling record of many years of meritorious public service.
