Immediate-past Governor of Niger State, Babangida Aliyu has denied owning properties in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, as is currently being circulated in the media.
He made this known in a Friday statement through his media aide, Mr. Israel Ebije, stating that the allegation was false and a figment of the imagination of the purveyors.
According to the statement, the former governor said that naming him on the list was a calculated attempt to subject him to ridicule and expose him to investigation by security agencies.
Also, he challenged anyone with evidence that he owned a property in the UAE to come forward with evidence, including pictures, while urging the public to discountenance the rumour.
“I do not have properties in Dubai or Abu Dhabi as peddled by some media organizations. I don’t even own a mattress outside Nigeria.
“They should do their investigation and if I am found guilty of owning any property in UAE, the Federal Government should appropriate it.
“I wish therefore to tell Nigerians to discard the allegation. It is not true, it’s mischievous, misleading and aimed at rubbishing my name,” the statement read in part.
He wondered if he was not being targeted because he chose to remain in the Peoples Democratic Party, while also expressing support for the anti-corruption stance of the present administration.
“I am totally committed to the President Muhammadu Buhari decisive effort towards repatriating stolen funds and his plan towards making political offices less palatable and incidence of impunity as low as possible. I am however concerned over baseless accusations peddled against my person,” he added.
He decried the situation where members of the opposition were tagged as corrupt because of their party affiliation while APC members were viewed as saints.
In the same vein, he stated that he belonged to the group of governors who fought impunity to a standstill in the PDP.