Presidency Tackles Amnesty International
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, Wednesday accused Amnesty International of defending Independent People of Biafra (IPOB) terrorists against Buhari regime.
The human rights organisation had in a statement to mark the International Day of Support for Victims of Enforced Disappeared on Monday, condemned the Buhari regime for increase in sudden disappearance of Nigerians in custody.
The group lamented the disappearance of over 200 people – including former Niger Delta militants, members of IPOB and #EndSARS protesters.
But Shehu in a statement titled, “Why Amnesty entreaties should be ignored”, on Wednesday dismissed Amnesty International’s statement as a “rant,” though he did not respond to several cases of disappearance in detention listed in the body’s statement.
“Speaking the language of universal human rights, Amnesty International deploys it only in defence – even outright promotion – of those that violently oppose the Federal Government of Nigeria,” Shehu said.
“Parroting the line of Nnamdi Kanu and IPOB, a proscribed terror organisation, they work to legitimise its cause to Western audiences.”
Shehu further claimed that IPOB members have cache of weapons and bombs across the country, adding that President Buhari will fight terrorism with everything at his disposal.
“IPOB murder Nigerian citizens. They kill police officers and military personnel and set government property on fire.
Now, they have amassed a substantial stockpile of weapons and bombs across the country.
Were this group in a Western country, you would not expect to hear Amnesty’s full-throated defence of their actions.
Instead, there would be silence or mealy-mouthed justification of Western governments’ action to check the spread of ‘terrorism’, Shehu said.
“Despite Amnesty’s self-proclaimed mandate to impartially transcend borders, unfortunately in Nigeria they play only domestic politics. The international NGO is being used as cover for the organisation’s local leaders to pursue their self-interests. Regrettably, this is not uncommon in Africa.
“There is nothing wrong with an activist stance; there are claims of neutrality, when all facts point to the opposite.
“Amnesty International has no legal right to exist in Nigeria. It must open a formal investigation into the personnel that occupy their Nigerian offices. They should reject the outrageously tendentious misinformation they receive and bring some semblance of due diligence to the sources they base their claims on. Currently, we see none.
“The Nigerian government will fight terrorism with all the means at its disposal. We will ignore Amnesty’s rantings. Especially when it comes from an organisation that does not hold itself to the same standards it demands of others.”
