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The Presidency Thursday denied that President Goodluck Jonathan traveled with former Borno State governor, Ali Modu Sheriff, for a meeting with the Chadian President, Idris Derby, on terrorism issues.
In a statement issued by the presidential spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati, it insisted that the extent of participation of Sheriff in President Jonathan’s mission to N’Djamena, the Chadian capital, was limited to his being part of Nigerians who welcomed the President to the foreign land.
It states that, the President said he was fully aware of allegations of Boko Haram sponsorship levelled against the former governor, adding that the findings of investigations on his (Sheriff’s) culpability were being awaited.
It will be recalled that an Australian clergy and negotiator, Stephen Davis engaged by the Federal Government for the release of the schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram in Chibok, Borno State in April, named Sheriff and a former Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika, as part of the sponsors of the fundamentalist Islamic sect, Boko Haram.
The criticisms that President Jonathan traveled with Sherrif were sparked by a photograph released by Abati on his twitter handle on Tuesday, showing Sheriff, Jonathan and the Chadian President in a sitting arrangement interpreted as a moment during their crucial meeting on the security issue.
But Abati said in his statement on Thursday that the photograph was taken at the airport.
He said, “The APC and others who rushed to condemn President Jonathan for a non-existent indiscretion would have found, if they took the least trouble to double-check, that there was absolutely no factual basis for their accusation.
“Those who associate with Senator Sheriff know that he has longstanding interests in Chad and often spends a lot of his time there. He happened to be in Ndjamena at the time of President Jonathan’s visit and joined other Nigerian residents of the Chadian capital in coming to the airport to welcome their President.
“That was the full extent of his participation in the visit and it was also at Ndjamena Airport that the pictures which formed the basis of the bogus allegation of President Jonathan hobnobbing with an ‘accused sponsor of terrorism’ were taken.
“The former governor’s presence in Chad was certainly not at President Jonathan’s instance and he did not participate in any of the President’s discussions with President Idriss Deby or his other engagements in Ndjamena.”
Abatati, who noted “with surprise, the unnecessary hue and cry raised by the All Progressives Congress and other bigoted critics of the Jonathan Administration” said the belief that Jonathan was “hobnobbing” with Sheriff, was “erroneous.”
He maintained that the President had not taken any step capable of jeopardising the ongoing investigation of the former governor.
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