The Director of Media and Publicity for the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Mr Femi Fani-Kayode has described the call for the investigation of the Nigerian First Lady, Mrs Patience Jonathan, by the International Criminal Court (ICC) as “absurd and an empty ranting of the opposition”.
Mr Fani-Kayode also took a swipe on the APC presidential candidate, retired General Muhamadu Buhari, insisting that he is the one that has questions to answer in the Hague.
“Empty And Boastful Ranting”
He said: “We read with amusement, the threat by the Buhari campaign organisation through the spokesperson, Mr Garuba Shehu, that it is their intention to drag the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, before the International Criminal Court of Justice (ICC), for allegedly indulging in what they described as “hate speech” at a recent rally in River State.
“Their threat to take the First lady before the ICC is not only absurd, but it is also nothing but the empty and boastful ranting of a perfidious, desperate, decaying and dying political party and such threat will amount to nothing.
“The truth is that if anybody is a candidate for the ICC, it is certainly not Dame Patience Jonathan, but rather General Mohammadu Buhari himself”.
Mr Fani-Kayode further said that another episode which Buhari had questions to answer, was his role in a mass murder of hundreds of people in the northern part of Nigeria. He alleged that General Buhari’s supporters murdered a number of young youth corpers who were in their prime in 2011.
‘Stone Anybody’
The APC Presidential Campaign Organisation had lodged a formal complaint against Nigeria’s First Lady, Mrs Jonathan, to the ICC and other agencies over statements credited to her asking Nigerians to stone anybody calling for change in the country.
Mrs Jonathan allegedly made the statement at the PDP Women Campaign in Calabar, Cross River State, last week .
The letter of complaint was signed by the Director General of the Buhari Campaign Organisation and Governor of Rivers State, Mr Rotimi Amaechi.
Governor Amaechi, said by her statement, the First Lady was clearly asking the PDP to attack the APC supporters because Nigerians know that change is the slogan of the opposition party.
Governor Amaechi lamented Mrs Jonathan’s hate speech, saying it contravened the laws and also the Abuja Peace Pact endorsed by the 13 presidential candidates in the March 28 election.
