Chinelo Obogo; Gyang Bere, Jos.

Former governor of Plateau State and senator representing Plateau North, Dr. Jonah David Jang, has challenged the All Progressive Congress (APC) to tell Nigerians how it funded the 2015 campaigns.

Jang said it was unfortunate that government mentioned his name among alleged looters after he had been investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and freed without any trace of corruption.

Jang, in a statement issued in Jos, yesterday, said there was no trace of N12.5 billion in his personal account when the EFCC investigated him, after he served as governor from 2007 to 2015.

“The list released by Minister of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed at the behest of the APC-led federal government wherein he alleged that I got N12.5 billion is laughable on preliminary evaluation, and pathetic when considered on the scales of truth and reality.  The so-called list of looters is a testament to the desperation which holds the APC in its firm grip after what is now certainly an infamous cameo in power considered by many to be tragic and regrettable.

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“For all those who were on the list, sources of the funds allegedly looted were stated, but in my case, there was none.

“When the APC government in Plateau state took me to the EFCC, they could not get a single case of financial impropriety to be filed against me in the courts.

“The EFCC has thoroughly investigated me and they know I don’t have an offshore bank account. They have all my account numbers and know the balances in each. Did they find the N12.5 billion in any of them? Why are we not talking of the campaign funds of the APC? Where did they get their funding from? Did they pluck the billions they spent from trees? Until and unless they tell Nigerians how they funded their campaigns in 2015, Nigerians would continue to see them as they are, and would not hesitate to vote them out in 2019.”

On his part, former governor of Niger State, Dr. Babangida Aliyu, accused the federal government of selective anti-graft fight.

Aliyu described the alleged ‘looters’ list as “a demonstration of incompetence” and added that “if the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is accused of being corrupt, then, those who defected from the party to the APC are also corrupt and should be tried.”