Former President Goodluck Jonathan has refuted reports claiming he accused the late President Muhammadu Buhari of having links with Boko Haram, saying his comments were misrepresented.
In a statement issued Jonathanās Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, the former president said he never suggested or implied that Buhari had any connection with the terrorist group or supported it in any way.
While speaking on Friday at the public presentation of āScarsā, a book written by former Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen. Lucky Irabor (rtd.), Jonathan said Boko Haram once nominated Buhari, his successor, to negotiate on their behalf with the federal government.
He said the insurgents mentioned Buhari after his administration set up committees to explore dialogue with the group.
However, former spokesperson to Buhari, Mallam Garba Shehu, refuted the claim as āfalse and politically motivatedā.
In the statement issued on behalf of Jonathan, his media adviser, Eze said the ex-presidentās comments were part of a broader reflection on Nigeriaās security challenges and were meant to highlight the deceptive tactics employed by Boko Haram in its early days.
He described the reports circulating in sections of the media suggesting that the nomination of Buhari by Boko Haram to represent them in dialogue with the federal government, made the former president somehow complicit in the Boko Haram crisis as misleading.
āWe wish to make it abundantly clear that the former Presidentās comments were grossly misrepresented. At no time did Dr Jonathan suggest, imply, or insinuate that President Buhari had any connection with Boko Haram or that he supported the group in any form.
āDr Jonathanās remarks, made in the course of a broader discussion on Nigeriaās security challenges, were meant to illustrate the deviousness and manipulative strategies employed by Boko Haram in their early years.
āHis reference was to a well-documented episode when various individuals and factions falsely claimed to represent the terrorist group and purported to name prominent Nigerians as possible mediators, without those individualsā knowledge or consent.
āThe point Dr Jonathan sought to make was that Boko Haram, in its characteristic deceit, often invoked the names of respected public figures to sow confusion, exploit political divisions, and undermine public confidence in government,ā Eze explained.
Eze said Jonathanās comments were therefore an illustration of the groupās duplicity, and not an accusation against the late former president or any individual, for that matter.
āThe former presidentās position was that if indeed Buhari was their choice negotiator, why didnāt Boko Haram expeditiously bring their evil terrorist agenda to an end when the retired General became president?
āFor the avoidance of doubt, Dr Jonathan recognises that President Muhammadu Buhari, like every patriotic Nigerian, stood firmly against terrorism and was himself a target of Boko Haram violence. Both men, during their respective tenures, shared a common commitment to restoring peace and stability to Nigeria,ā Eze added.
Eze asked Nigerians to ādisregard any misinterpretation remarksā, adding that Jonathan remains committed to peace, unity, and the strengthening of democratic values in Nigeria.
Chuks Okocha
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