The former leader of Nigeria's armed group has said he was arrested because he refused to tell the group to retract a statement claiming
responsibility for last week's deadly attacks in the capital, Abuja.
Henry Okah, currently being held in jail in South Africa, told Al Jazeera on Tuesday that he received a phone call from a "close associate" of Goodluck Jonathan, the Nigerian president, telling him to urge the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (Mend) to withdraw its claim for the bombings, which killed at least 10 people and left 36 others injured on the 50th anniversay of Nigeria's independence.
Henry Okah, currently being held in jail in South Africa, told Al Jazeera on Tuesday that he received a phone call from a "close associate" of Goodluck Jonathan, the Nigerian president, telling him to urge the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (Mend) to withdraw its claim for the bombings, which killed at least 10 people and left 36 others injured on the 50th anniversay of Nigeria's independence.
Photo 1 Henry Okah confirmed Photo 2 Jomo Gbomo
"On Saturday morning, just a day after the attack, a very close associate of President Jonathan called me and explained to me that there had been a bombing in Nigeria and that President Jonathan wanted me to reach out to the group, Mend, and get them to retract the earlier statement they had issued claiming the attacks," Okah said.
"They wanted to blame the attacks on northerners who are trying to fight against him [Jonathan] to come back as president and if this was done, I was not going to have any problems with the South African government.
"I declined to do this and a few hours later I was arrested. It was based on their belief that I was going to do that that Jonathan issued a statement saying that Mend did not carry out the attack."
'Unpatriotic elements'
Jonathan, who hails from the country's south and has declared his intentions to stand in next year's presidential election, said investigations had revealed Mend, which is fighting for a greater share of Nigeria's oil wealth, knew nothing about the attacks.
He said the bombings had been carried out by a small group based outside Nigeria, sponsored by "unpatriotic elements within the country".
Nigeria will be holding elections in January almost a year after Jonathan assumed the presidency after the incumbent president failed to complete his term due to illness and eventual death.
Jonathan's predecessor, Umaru Yaradua, came from the northern state of Katsina and Nigeria has an unwritten agreement for the presidency to alternate between the mainly Muslim north and the largely Christian south.
Al Jazeera did not get any immediate reaction from the Nigerian government about Okah's claims.
Meanwhile, the authorities have released nine people they arrested in connection with the bomb blasts on Monday, including an aide for Ibrahim Babangida, the country's former military leader.
Raymond Dokpesi, the director of Babandida's campaign to become the ruling party presidential candidate, was questioned by the country's intelligence services over the blasts, an aide said on Tuesday.
Dokpesi, who also owns one of Nigeria's leading television and radio stations, was summoned to the State Security Services (SSS) on Monday, Kassim Afegbua, a spokesman for Babangida, told the AFP news agency.
"He was released yesterday and is to report back today at about 3'oclock (1400 GMT)," Afegbua said.
"They said it is to do with complicity in the bomb incident of October 1."
Several media reports on Tuesday said text messages found on the mobile phone of one of the nine suspects arrested by the state secret police led to the summoning of Dokpesi.
Threats of fresh bomb explosions heightened yesterday, as the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) said it would wreak more havoc should the Federal Government repatriate and put its leader, Henry Okah to trial over the October 1 bomb attack in Abuja.
Spokesman of MEND, Jomo Gbomo during an online interview with the Daily Sun maintained that the group was responsible for the bombings, which coincided with the parade ceremony during the nation’s 50th Independence anniversary.
If Okah is repatriated, he contended, he would not get fair trial because the MEND leader has always been blamed for what he is not involved in.
“We will come down very hard on the system because it will be another Ken Saro Wiwa kangaroo trial.
“Henry Okah has always been blamed for what he is not involved in. This is not the first-time, so, it is not coming as a surprise to us. If he was not arrested during the Bonga and Atlas Cove attacks, he would have been blamed as the mastermind,” he said.
"On Saturday morning, just a day after the attack, a very close associate of President Jonathan called me and explained to me that there had been a bombing in Nigeria and that President Jonathan wanted me to reach out to the group, Mend, and get them to retract the earlier statement they had issued claiming the attacks," Okah said.
"They wanted to blame the attacks on northerners who are trying to fight against him [Jonathan] to come back as president and if this was done, I was not going to have any problems with the South African government.
"I declined to do this and a few hours later I was arrested. It was based on their belief that I was going to do that that Jonathan issued a statement saying that Mend did not carry out the attack."
'Unpatriotic elements'
Jonathan, who hails from the country's south and has declared his intentions to stand in next year's presidential election, said investigations had revealed Mend, which is fighting for a greater share of Nigeria's oil wealth, knew nothing about the attacks.
He said the bombings had been carried out by a small group based outside Nigeria, sponsored by "unpatriotic elements within the country".
Nigeria will be holding elections in January almost a year after Jonathan assumed the presidency after the incumbent president failed to complete his term due to illness and eventual death.
Jonathan's predecessor, Umaru Yaradua, came from the northern state of Katsina and Nigeria has an unwritten agreement for the presidency to alternate between the mainly Muslim north and the largely Christian south.
Al Jazeera did not get any immediate reaction from the Nigerian government about Okah's claims.
Meanwhile, the authorities have released nine people they arrested in connection with the bomb blasts on Monday, including an aide for Ibrahim Babangida, the country's former military leader.
Raymond Dokpesi, the director of Babandida's campaign to become the ruling party presidential candidate, was questioned by the country's intelligence services over the blasts, an aide said on Tuesday.
Dokpesi, who also owns one of Nigeria's leading television and radio stations, was summoned to the State Security Services (SSS) on Monday, Kassim Afegbua, a spokesman for Babangida, told the AFP news agency.
"He was released yesterday and is to report back today at about 3'oclock (1400 GMT)," Afegbua said.
"They said it is to do with complicity in the bomb incident of October 1."
Several media reports on Tuesday said text messages found on the mobile phone of one of the nine suspects arrested by the state secret police led to the summoning of Dokpesi.
Threats of fresh bomb explosions heightened yesterday, as the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) said it would wreak more havoc should the Federal Government repatriate and put its leader, Henry Okah to trial over the October 1 bomb attack in Abuja.
Spokesman of MEND, Jomo Gbomo during an online interview with the Daily Sun maintained that the group was responsible for the bombings, which coincided with the parade ceremony during the nation’s 50th Independence anniversary.
If Okah is repatriated, he contended, he would not get fair trial because the MEND leader has always been blamed for what he is not involved in.
“We will come down very hard on the system because it will be another Ken Saro Wiwa kangaroo trial.
“Henry Okah has always been blamed for what he is not involved in. This is not the first-time, so, it is not coming as a surprise to us. If he was not arrested during the Bonga and Atlas Cove attacks, he would have been blamed as the mastermind,” he said.
More Bombings In store
Gbomo has averred that MEND had made its point with the bombings in Abuja and would employ the same method of attack on military targets. This, he explained, would happen when the group declares resumption of hostilities.
He, however, tendered apology to the families of innocent Nigerians that lost their lives to the Abuja explosions, saying, it was not their intent to kill them.
According to him, “Our apology stems from the avoidable loss of innocent lives as this was not our intent. We wanted to use the opportunity to blame the security agencies for not playing their roles considering the forewarning we gave them.
“We have made our point and we will use this method of attack on military targets after we declare a resumption of hostilities.”
Reacting to President Goodluck Jonathan’s statement that MEND was not responsible for the attacks but perpetrated by terrorists, Gbomo asserted: “It is an obvious political comment which any smart person can see through.”
Gbomo has averred that MEND had made its point with the bombings in Abuja and would employ the same method of attack on military targets. This, he explained, would happen when the group declares resumption of hostilities.
He, however, tendered apology to the families of innocent Nigerians that lost their lives to the Abuja explosions, saying, it was not their intent to kill them.
According to him, “Our apology stems from the avoidable loss of innocent lives as this was not our intent. We wanted to use the opportunity to blame the security agencies for not playing their roles considering the forewarning we gave them.
“We have made our point and we will use this method of attack on military targets after we declare a resumption of hostilities.”
Reacting to President Goodluck Jonathan’s statement that MEND was not responsible for the attacks but perpetrated by terrorists, Gbomo asserted: “It is an obvious political comment which any smart person can see through.”
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