The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says the Buhari Presidency and the All Progressives Congress (APC) plan to use decoy of ambassadorial appointments to shield the immediate-past service chiefs from investigation over alleged killing of innocent Nigerians and crimes against humanity under their watch.
The main opposition party stated this in a Friday statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan while reacting to a presidential statement announcing the nomination of the ex-service chiefs as non-career ambassadors-designate.
“President Muhammadu Buhari has forwarded the names of the immediate past Service Chiefs to the Senate as non-career Ambassadors-Designate.
“In a letter to Senator Ahmad Ibrahim Lawan, President of the Senate, the President said: “In accordance with section 171 (1), (2) (c) & sub-section (4) of 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, I have the honour to forward for confirmation by the Senate, the under-listed five (5) names of nominees as Non-Career Ambassadors-Designate.”
“The nominees are: Gen Abayomi G. Olonisakin (Rtd ), Lt Gen Tukur Y. Buratai (Rtd), Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (Rtd), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar (Rtd), and Air Vice Marshal Mohammed S. Usman (Rtd).
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“The President urged the Senate to give expeditious consideration to the nominations,” the statement signed by Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina read.
In its reaction, the PDP charged the Senate to “eschew all partisan considerations and stand on the side of the people, particularly the victims of atrocious regime of the ex-service chiefs by outrightly rejecting the demand by President Muhammadu Buhari to confirm them as ambassadors.
“It is indeed sacrilegious and a horrible assault on the sensibility of Nigerians that the APC government is seeking to use ambassadorial appointments as desperate measure to secure diplomatic immunity for the former commanders and protect them from investigation, arrest and possible prosecution by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for the atrocities committed against innocent Nigerians under their command.”
The PDP noted that appointing the former service chiefs as ambassadors would confer diplomatic immunity on them and “provide them a route for escape”.
The party further stated that taking such actions at a time the ICC has declared its readiness to commence full investigation on their alleged involvement in crimes against humanity in Nigeria appears to further validate the allegations against them.
:Moreover, the frenzy by officials of the Buhari Presidency in mounting pressure on the Senate to confirm such abominable ambassadorial nominations has further raised public apprehensions of a desperate attempt to cover the culpability of some other individuals connected to the APC administration.
“It is shocking that instead of allowing the former service chiefs to answer for the alleged crime against humanity under their command including reported cases of extra-judicial execution, killing of unarmed protesters at Lekki Toll Gate, Lagos, rape, illegal arrest as well as detention and torture of innocent Nigerians, the APC administration is rather plotting their escape.
“The accused service chiefs must not be allowed to use diplomatic immunity to escape investigation and possible prosecution for the killing of unarmed EndSARS protester at Lekki Toll gate and other parts of the country as well as the hundreds of civilians reportedly killed by soldiers in the Zaria massacre.
“This is in addition to series of reported military invasions and mass shooting in communities in Borno, Yobe, Rivers, Abia, Anambra among other states across the six geo-political zones of our country, where soldiers reportedly razed communities and massacred unarmed civilians under the command of the ex-service chiefs.
“Our party therefore calls on Nigerians, across board, to unite in rejecting these ambassadorial nominations for the accused former commanders and demand that President Buhari should immediately withdraw their nominations from the Senate.
“The least that is expected of President Buhari is to direct the former service chiefs to answer for the alleged crimes,” the statement further read.