by George Ozalla
Dr Jibril Lawal Tafida, Special Adviser to the Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has disowned a circulating document which alleged corruption in the National Assembly and accused the Senate President of abandoning him during the loss of his mother. The letter, dated November 22 and addressed to the Office of the President in Abuja, has been widely shared across social media platforms.
According to a disclaimer written and signed by Dr Tafida, the document was fabricated and purposely crafted to weaponise his name against the Senate President. He stated that he neither authored nor authorised any such communication and described the material as a clear act of mischief aimed at sowing discord and maligning the leadership of the Senate.
Dr Tafida explained that the content of the unsigned letter could not withstand basic scrutiny, noting that Senator Akpabio is not a member of the Tenders Board of the National Assembly and therefore plays no role in contract awards. He stressed that a simple verification would reveal the falsity of the allegations, adding that the premises of the National Assembly are managed by the FCDA through its contractor, Laralex Nigeria Limited.
He affirmed that his relationship with the Senate President remains cordial and grounded in mutual respect, dismissing claims that he had at any time expressed grievances similar to the sentiments contained in the fake publication. He urged the public, media organisations, political actors, digital distributors, and online publishers to disregard and desist from circulating the material.
