By George Ozalla
President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, has petitioned the Department of State Services (DSS) over a purported statement circulating on social media in which he was alleged to have made comments against people from Northern Nigeria.
The petition, signed by Akpabio’s Chief of Staff, Chinedu Akubueze, asked the security agency to investigate the origin and circulation of the statement, which was described as false, inflammatory and capable of causing division.
The disputed statement appeared in a graphic bearing Akpabio’s photograph and his position as President of the Senate. It quoted him as saying: “Northerners, You Will Be The Ones To Suffer The Most, If You Allow Tinubu To Lose The Election.”
Akpabio, through the petition, denied making the statement, saying there was no evidence to establish when, where or on what occasion he made such a remark.
The petition noted that there was no speech, interview, video, audio recording, official statement or credible news report supporting the quotation. It also questioned the absence of any identifiable publisher or verifiable source on the graphic.
According to the petition, the material appeared to have been created and circulated as though it were an authentic statement by the Senate President, with the potential to cause resentment against him, particularly among people in Northern Nigeria.
The petition also referred to a preliminary examination of publicly available Facebook records which allegedly identified some of the earliest persons linked to the circulation of the graphic.
Among those mentioned were Abdullai Musa, who allegedly posted the graphic in a Facebook group known as Sheik Muhammad bin Uthman Group 24, and Uzoma Chilaka, whose Facebook post reportedly reproduced the graphic alongside commentary attributed to him and Engineer Ibrahim Umar Ammar.
The petition said Ibrahim Umar Ammar, whose Facebook account was described as verified, later reproduced the graphic and similar commentary.
It, however, stressed that the persons mentioned should not be regarded as guilty before the conclusion of any investigation.
The petition asked the DSS to regard them as persons of interest whose activities could assist investigators in establishing the origin of the graphic, identifying its creator and determining how it was distributed.
It also urged the security agency to examine relevant publication records, communications and other evidence that could lead to those responsible for producing and circulating the alleged false statement.
