Special Adviser On Media To The President Denies Report Of The Presidency Being Turned Down By IBB

Presidency has denied the report  that former President Ibrahim Babangida  turned down a request made by President Goodluck Jonathan to break the fast with him in his Minna Hilltop home.

The presidency described the report as completely untrue and demand a retraction of the report. This was made known in a statement signed by the Presidents Special Adviser on Media & Publicity,  Reuben Abati

Part of the reports reads  “former military president, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB), Monday turned down a request made by President Goodluck Jonathan to break the fast with him in his Minna Hilltop home, a reliable Presidency source told Peoples Daily.

The source told our reporter that Jonathan had reasoned that it would be inappropriate for the Holy month of Ramadan to elapse without him showing the spirit of comradeship with the former military president.

“The president (Jonathan) sent word to IBB indicating he wanted to join the former leader for a breakfast with him in Minna”, the source disclosed.

According to the source, IBB  turned down the request on the ground that such a visit could be misconstrued, especially when the host governor, Dr. Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, is currently observing the lesser hajj in Saudi Arabia”

The Presidency Statement reads thus

The mischievous lead report in the Peoples Daily newspaper today that President Goodluck Jonathan sought to visit former President Ibrahim Babangida in Minna to show him “the spirit of comradeship” during Ramadan is completely untrue.

Although President Jonathan participates in the Ramadan fast every year in solidarity with Nigerians of the Islamic faith, he has never as Vice President or President of the country visited the residence of any individual to break his fast.

Rather, it has been the President’s custom to regularly invite Moslems from all strata of society to break their fast with him at the Presidential Villa during the month of Ramadan.

In keeping with that established practice, President Jonathan has been busy  hosting  Moslems, most evenings of the current Ramadan season.

As much as he respects and holds former President Babangida in high regard, President Jonathan has never indicated any interest in visiting him at Minna during the current Ramadan.

Therefore, there could not have been any “turning down” of a visit by President Jonathan by the former president.

We condemn the decision of the editors of the Peoples Daily to publish such arrant falsehood in spite of our vigorous rebuttal as a further manifestation of a continuing effort to sow the seeds of discord in the polity.

Although the newspaper cites a phantom “reliable presidency source” and “a source close to the former president” to buttress its fictitious report, the editors of Peoples Daily know fully well that they can never prove the veracity of the false claim that President Jonathan either offered to break fast with General Babangida in Minna or was turned down by the former president.

We therefore demand a full retraction of the totally false report which demeans the Office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and an apology by the newspaper.

Culled from NigerianEye