Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan is reported to be shocked by revelations from the EFCC concerning some of the ex-ministers.
The Ex-ministers are being said to be angry at Jonathan, stating that he abandoned them and lent them no support when they were being arrested by the EFCC.
Jonathan meanwhile wants the ongoing investigation and trial to run its full course.
According to the Nation, Jonathan and his ex-minister are at war now.
The war has reportedly descended to the point where Jonathan doesn’t talk to them and didn’t ask about them when they were having issues with the EFCC.
One of the ex-ministers was said to be close to tears when Jonathan exchanged pleasantries with him without a mention of his ordeal in EFCC’s custody.
According to the Nation, a reliable source said: “Our camp has broken into two. The ex-President is on one side and the embattled ex-ministers is on the other.
“The cold war is a result of the ongoing arrest and trial of some former ministers and aides of Jonathan.
“Some of the ex-ministers and aides are angry that Jonathan was not owning up or rising in their defence over the allegations levelled against them.
“Some of them are feeling bad that Jonathan has neither hired lawyers to defend them nor met with President Muhammadu Buhari for plea bargain on some cases.
“A few others accuse him of not taking care of their families while they were in detention.”
Responding to a question, the source said: “I remember during one of our meetings, Governor Nyesom Wike spoke with anger on how some of us also betrayed Jonathan.
“The situation has degenerated to the extent that most of the former PDP governors do not visit Jonathan anymore.”
The Nation reports that a former minister responded saying that some of the embattled ministers were being unrealistic.
The source said: “These ex-ministers cannot blame Jonathan for their travails at all.
“The ex-President was just hearing of some of these huge sums for the first time. Some of these funds were released under the guise of security votes without his approval.
He has been devastated on the allegations against some ex-ministers.
“In some cases, withdrawals and disbursements from the treasury exceeded his approval.
“It will be extremely difficult for the ex-President to own up to everything.
“Even some ex-ministers from the North were alleged to have diverted some of these funds to either personal use or to mobilize their supporters against Jonathan during the 2015 poll.”
On legal representation, the source added: “At a point, Jonathan assembled a team of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN) to defend some of these ex-ministers and aides, but the legal team presented a bill running into billions of naira, which he said he could not afford. He had to abandon the plan.
“We have asked our colleagues to be considerate too. Jonathan is having his own share of the probe. Apart from his wife being investigated, his cousin and some of his associates are also on trial. This is enough an emotional burden to him.
“Despite the tightening of investigation noose around him, Jonathan came out recently to raise issues on the trial of Dasuki for the $2.1 billion arms scandal.
Some of these slighted ministers who are currently under investigation include: ex-NSA Sambo Dasuki; Nurudeen Mohammed; Sen. Musiliu Obanikoro; Bashir Yuguda; former Minister of Power, Mohammed Wakil; Bala Mohammed; Diezani Alison-Madueke; Oloye Jumoke Akinjide; Prof. Viola Onwuliri; ex-Minister Nenadi Usman; ex-Minister Senator Joel Ikenya; Chief Femi Fani-Kayode; Dr. Doyin Okupe; Dr. Reuben Abati; High Chief Raymond Dokpesi; Olisa Metuh and members of the Goodluck Support Group.
The anti-graft agency has also grilled a former Minister of Education, Ibrahim Shekarau; a former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Aminu Wali; former Minister of Mines and Steel, Arch. Musa Muhammad Sada; and a former Minister of State for Agriculture