President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, on Wednesday petitioned the Department of State Services (DSS) over a purported anti-North statement allegedly attributed to him and circulated on social media.
The latest development was contained in a statement issued by his Special Assistant, Mr Jackson Udom.
In a letter signed by Akpabio’s Chief of Staff, Chinedu Akubueze, the Senate President urged the DSS to urgently investigate the “creation and coordinated dissemination” on Facebook and other digital platforms of what he described as a false, inflammatory and divisive statement attributed to him.
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The alleged statement, circulated alongside Akpabio’s photograph and designation, read: “Northerners, you will be the ones to suffer the most if you allow Tinubu to lose the election.
Akpabio denied making the statement, saying: “The President of the Senate did not make this statement. No date, venue, speech, interview, video, audio recording, official statement or credible news report has been produced to authenticate it.”
He further said the graphic carried no identifiable publisher’s mark or verifiable source, alleging that it appeared to have been deliberately manufactured and presented as an authentic quotation.
According to the letter, the material was intended to deceive the public, provoke regional resentment against Akpabio and portray him as threatening the people of Northern Nigeria.
The document identified Abdullai Musa, who allegedly posted the graphic in a Facebook group named “Sheik Muhammad bin Uthman Group 24,” as one of the earliest traceable amplifiers of the material.
It also named Uzoma Chilaka, whose Facebook post allegedly reproduced the graphic alongside commentary credited to Boniface Uzoma Chilaka, and Engineer Ibrahim Umar Ammar, whose verified Facebook account subsequently reproduced the graphic and substantially similar commentary.
It stressed, however, that the individuals named should not be presumed guilty before investigation, describing them as “material persons of interest” because of their alleged early and substantial roles in circulating the material.
It said their publication records, devices, communications, and the provenance of the image could help investigators identify the graphic’s designer, original uploader, sponsors, intermediaries, and distribution network.
Akubueze therefore urged the DSS to investigate the matter in accordance with the law and establish those responsible for creating and circulating the alleged fabricated statement.
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