{"id":46137,"date":"2021-01-17T12:26:02","date_gmt":"2021-01-17T11:26:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nationalwire.com.ng\/?p=46137"},"modified":"2021-01-17T12:26:02","modified_gmt":"2021-01-17T11:26:02","slug":"akpabio-threatens-court-action-over-fake-news-of-5-million-bribe-to-malami","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nationalwire.com.ng\/sub\/akpabio-threatens-court-action-over-fake-news-of-5-million-bribe-to-malami\/","title":{"rendered":"Akpabio Threatens Court Action Over Fake News Of $5 Million Bribe To Malami"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Chief Press Secretary to the\u00a0Honourable Minister of the Niger Delta Affairs, Anietie Ekong has debunked a rumour making the rounds that the Honourable Minister, Senator Godswill Akpabio has paid a sum of $5m to the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami.<\/p>\n

A release signed by Ekong on Saturday reads in part: \u201cThe attention of the Honourable Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio has been drawn to a piece of fake news which claimed that the Minister of Niger Delta, Senator Godswill Akpabio paid a sum of $5 million bribe to the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami and others to secure the appointment of a Sole Administrator for the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).\u201d<\/p>\n

Reading further, the Chief Press Secretary to the Honourable Minister said,\u00a0\u201cWe wish to state categorically that this is a piece of malicious concoction manufactured from the pit of hell by mischief -makers. It is a figment of the imagination of the author of the fake news. Senator Akpabio denies the story in its entirety. The authors of the fake news should be ready to back up their claim or face the full wrath of the law.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe story is a desperate attempt by some unscrupulous bloggers to impugn the integrity of the Honourable Minister of Niger Delta Affairs and the Honourable Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami as the claim is not only spurious but utterly ridiculous.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fact is that in a suit number ABJ\/CS\/617\/2020 filed by a Civil Society Organization, Forum for Accountability and Good Governance, at a Federal High Court in Abuja, Justice Ahmed Mohammed had granted an order restraining the Interim Management Committee of the NDDC from performing the functions of the board and accessing the Commission\u2019s offices and files.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Order clearly listed the Managing Director Professor Kemebradikumo Pondei, Acting Executive Director of Projects Dr. Cairo Ojougboh, Mrs. Caroline Nagboh and Cecilia Akintomide as those restrained. The Order also asked that \u201cthe most senior civil servant or administrator in the Commission be appointed\u201d to take charge of the Commission.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was based on this order that President Muhammadu Buhari approved the elevation of the Acting Executive Director of Finance and Administration, Mr. Effiong Akwa, being the most Senior Administrator to take over the headship of the NDDC as an Interim Administrator pending the completion of the Forensic Audit Exercise.<\/p>

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\u201cIt is therefore absurd for anyone to even imagine that the Honourable Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio would bribe the Attorney General before an Order of the Court is complied with as the purveyors of the fake news have stated. The general public should discountenance this piece of trash.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is obvious that some\u00a0persons who are scared of the ongoing forensic audit of the NDDC as ordered by President Muhammadu Buhari are working tirelessly to scuttle the exercise by blackmailing the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio.\u00a0 Their modus operandi is to churn out fake news in a bid to stop Senator Akpabio from sanitizing the NDDC. Otherwise, how can a responsible news website make such a grievous allegation without any shred of evidence to back up its claim,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He however stated categorically that, no amount of fake news against his principal would deter him from discharging his rightful duties to the public.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowever, we wish to state that no amount of sponsored fake news and blackmail would deter Senator Akpabio from doing the right thing as directed by Mr. President. The Minister has the overwhelming support of the impoverished masses of the Niger Delta who have borne the brunt of underdevelopment of the region over the years,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Chief Press Secretary to the\u00a0Honourable Minister of the Niger Delta Affairs, Anietie Ekong has debunked a rumour making the rounds that the Honourable Minister, Senator Godswill Akpabio has paid a sum of $5m to the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami. A release signed by Ekong on Saturday reads in part: \u201cThe …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":25479,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[4331,2211,232],"coauthors":[2393],"class_list":["post-46137","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-news","tag-akpabio","tag-malami","tag-niger-delta"],"yoast_head":"\nAkpabio Threatens Court Action Over Fake News Of $5 Million Bribe To Malami - National Wire<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Chief Press Secretary to the\u00a0Honourable Minister of the Niger Delta Affairs, Anietie Ekong has debunked a rumour making the rounds\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nationalwire.com.ng\/sub\/akpabio-threatens-court-action-over-fake-news-of-5-million-bribe-to-malami\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Akpabio Threatens Court Action Over Fake News Of $5 Million Bribe To Malami - 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