Nigeria: I Am Being Blackmailed - IBB

Abuja — One of the key contenders for the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, presidential ticket, former military president Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, has alleged attempts by unidentified persons to blackmail him and perhaps frustrate his bid for the presidency.

Making this revelation in a release signed by one of his aides and made available to LEADERSHIP SUNDAY, IBB described the attempted blackmail as not only wicked and ill-conceived but could have been the handiwork of politicians desperate to destroy him.

According to the release, the presidential aspirant was accused, through a GSM text message being circulated among Nigerians, of being behind a purported plan by Muslims to attack their Christian neighbours resident in the northern part of the country.

Excerpts of the release signed by the IBB campaign's director of press, Prince Kassim Afegbua, and entitled 'Count IBB out of any planned attack on Christians and Muslims', read: "Our attention has been drawn to a very damaging, spurious, untrue ill-motivated and orchestrated text messages being circulated by people who are desperate to blackmail our presidential aspirant Gen. IBB, linking him to a purported attempt by Muslims to attack Christians in the north.

"To all intents and purposes, this latest blackmail is not only wicked and ill-conceived, but further goes to show how desperate politicians could go to blackmail people. No matter the motive, it is conceived in bad taste and should be condemned in all its ramifications. Gen. IBB has been in the forefront of those crusaders who believe in religious harmony in the country. As a president, he was able to reopen bilateral relations with Israel which paved the way for our Christian brothers and sisters to go on Holy Pilgrimage. He neither discriminates against Christians nor does he engage in anything that tends to undermine the unity of the nation.

"For anybody for whatever motivation to link him with such dastardly intention of creating bad blood among Muslims and Christians is a clear-cut attempt to blackmail him to dim his soaring popularity in the build-up to the 2011 election. We abhor this ill-conceived intention in all its entirety. We condemn wholly the motive. We say tufiakwa to anyone who nurtures such devilish intention. Nigeria's secular status has come to stay and anyone who tries to undermine such recognition might just be inviting crisis to the country.

"We therefore call on all to disregard the ill-conceived text message and join hands with IBB in his quest to provide sound and purposeful leadership to the country through the ballot box. We call on everyone to be more vigilant in order to arrest this ugly situation and those behind the purported text message".

Gen. Babangida's chief campaigner Chief Raymond Dokpesi recently alleged plans by government agents to assassinate him, drawing a stern denial by the presidency. Only penultimate week, IBB publicly declared his intention to seek the PDP ticket in the 2011 presidential election.

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Comment by Emmanuel Nwabugwu Chibunwanne on October 29, 2010 at 11:57am: WHEN YOU FINISHED TELLING US THE LITLE GOOD HE DID, PLEASE KINDLY TELL US THE UNCOUNTABLE ATROCITIES HE HAS DONE TOO, THE PPLE HE KILLED........EG, ABIOLA AND CO............AND HOW HE DETERMIND TO RENDER THE COUNTRY USELESS WITH CURRUPTION AND STEALING, CAN WE JUST LOOK AT HIS FACE AND LETS TELL EACH OTHER WHAT WE SAW, HE IS JUST A REGISTARD BORN CROOK WHO HAS COME AGAIN TO DISTROY OR IF POSSIBLE, TO SALE THIS COUNTRY AND YET, NOTHING WILL HAPPEN TO HIM, BCS THE EFCC MUST NOT WORK AGAINST THEIR GODFATHERS.............IF NOT SO, ARE YOU TELLING ME THE OBJ IS TOO INNOCENT TO BE FREE? WHY OJUKWU SIMPLY CALLED HIM A FRUAD.

Comment by Emmanuel Nwabugwu Chibunwanne on October 29, 2010 at 11:45am: IT'S A PITY THAT THOSE OLD MEN ARE NOT ASHAME OF THEMSELVES, CONSIDERING THAT MUST OF THEM HAS BEEN THERE BEFORE BUT DID NOTHING TO MAKE THIS NATION A BETTER PLACE FOR THE COMMEON MAN, YET THEY ARE FIGHTING BY ALL MEANS TO BE THERE AGAIN, WE ARE 50YRS OLD NATION, YET OUR SO CALLED LEADERS ARE STILL OPENING THEIR FRICKY MOUNTH TO PROMISE OF ELECTRICITY, ROAD, HOSPITAL ETC, I HEARD SOME OF THEIR ADVERTS ON RADIO, NOW I KNOW THAT BLOOD BORN THIEVES WILL NEVER REPENT. GOD WILL ONLY HELP US WHEN WE ARE READY TO HELP OURSELVES.

Comment by Blessing Julius a.k.a. Temi on October 4, 2010 at 1:31pm: thief raymond, wots is your political worth that any govt agent will want to waste their arsenal on you.

Comment by Otagbo Omocheche Joy on October 1, 2010 at 2:26pm: HENRY OJIE WHAT DO MEAN IBB NEED TO CONVICE U ENOUGH? DOES IT MEAN U RE CONSIDERING HIM? PLS LET WAKE UP THIS AGE IS THE AGE OF IGNORANCE ANYMORE, IBB AND ALL OF HIS SUPPORTER MUST GO AND HAVE A RETHINK OF THEMSELF. WE DONT NEED THEM AGAIN LET THEM GO AND REST PLS.

Comment by maduabuchi onuoha on October 1, 2010 at 2:22pm: IBB it's ur conscience that's hunting u

Comment by Bola Hussein on October 1, 2010 at 11:16am: What is even the relevance of a Dokpesi that will make govt agents want to kill him... What threat can his personality or his business concern pose to a potential presidential candidate, awon eyan ma npon ara won le sa, anyway, somebody must do the shit carrying. This chief is a desperate and ruthless businessman, Am sure this is another strategy to extort more money from IBB by painting the picture that his job as a campaign director is daunting and dangerous...agbari po ni Naija. Truth is, Mr. or Chief Dokpesi you are not in any way relevant in the political calculations of Nigeria but a desperado trying to survive... Happy Golden Jubilee Nigeria.

Comment by henry ojie ogude on September 30, 2010 at 3:51pm: we need more assurance 4rm IBB,HE NEEDS TO CONVINCE US MORE ,CAUSE WE DON'T TRUST HIM ANYLONGER