Ayo Oke: How APC is playing politics with serious national issues – Seriake Dickson

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The All Progressives Congress, or APC, has come under fire from former Bayelsa State governor Henry Seriake Dickson, who claims the party is now renowned for playing politics with important national issues.

He claims that this is the reason why Ayodele Oke, a former director general of Nigeria’s National Intelligence Agency (NIA), was once charged by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) despite having nothing against him. Oke was a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Goodluck Jonathan, the president at the time, selected Oke to lead the NIA, but the late former President Muhammadu Buhari’s APC government opened corruption proceedings against him via the EFCC.

Dickson criticized the APC and insisted that such prosecution shouldn’t occur in the first place after President Bola Tinubu screened the first ambassadorial nominees, of which Mr. Oke was one of the three names provided to the National Assembly.

Remember that President Tinubu had brought the names of three people before the Senate for approval as ambassadors.

They were Aminu Dalhatu, Kayode Are, and Ayodele Oke.

Senator Dickson of Bayelsa West, the Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, expressed interest in learning the outcome of the Oke’s corruption case with the Nigerian authorities.

The member argued that in order to address certain occurrences, the Senate has an obligation to ask the nominees pertinent questions.

“I asked Oke, pointedly, to clear the air on the controversies leading to his exit from office[as NIA DG. In his answers, Ambassador Oke…explained the issues leading to his departure from office and furnished us with a copy of a court order affirming his acquittal, following the withdrawal of the case against him,” Dickson wrote on X.

“This confirms the view I have long held: that since its formation, the APC has always played politics with serious national issues such as corruption, terrorism, and the economy. They politicised and ethnicised the Boko Haram and terrorism challenges, which have escalated over the years under their watch, even with a President from the North.

“They played politics with the attempt at reduction of fuel subsidy, but have now turned around to impose a harsher version of total subsidy removal, which has plunged Nigerians into poverty. And they played a one-sided anti-corruption crusade targeting and criminalising opposition leaders.

“After listening to Mr. Oke’s explanation, I have no doubt that he was a victim of the APC’s misguided vendetta to criminalise the PDP and its leadership, just as they did to Sambo Dasuki, former NSA.

“No one is against a well-structured and systematic, apolitical fight against corruption, which is a major national issue, but it must not target selected individuals or the opposition. It must be fought across board, as all are equal before the law.

“The Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), as well as other security and intelligence institutions, must be handled with greater respect and discretion, even when issues of misconduct arise.

“These are strategic tools in the hands of the President and the nation, and must be jealously protected and guarded, irrespective of political or other considerations, in order not to compromise the security architecture of the country.

“Once an assignment, order, or objective is approved by a sitting President acting within his powers, and the order is not unlawful, the intelligence chief must be protected, even if we disagree with that order as politicians.

“Following Mr. Oke’s explanation and the withdrawal of the case by the EFCC, which should not have started in the first place, I voted to clear Mr. Oke, and I congratulate him. I also voted at the Committee to clear the two other ambassadorial nominees — Kayode Are and Aminu Dalhatu — who are very experienced and eminently qualified Nigerians.”

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