Those Who Wanted To Remove Jonathan Introduced Banditry – Ex CBN DG

Obadiah Mailafia, former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), says people who were hellbent on ousting former President Goodluck Jonathan from power brought bandits to Nigeria in 2015

Malaifa made the startling revelation in an interview with The PUNCH on Thursday.

He said powerful individuals planned to use the bandits to start a war had Jonathan not conceded the 2015 presidential election.

He disclosed that the influential persons brought foreigners and armed them to execute war and destabilize the country, adding that these persons were not disarmed following Jonathan concession and the result is the insecurity and criminality that pervades the country today.

Mailafia did not provide any evidence to corroborate his claims and popular for making controversial and unsubstantiated claims.

The former CBN deputy governor also said there should be no amnesty for the bandits because they are only out to destroy.

“During the 2015 elections they brought in thousands of foreigners into this country, armed them because it was a case of if Goodluck Jonathan doesn’t surrender, there will be war. They were ready for civil war; they were not ready for peace,” Mailafia said.

“Of course, Jonathan handed over to them and then they turned their backs on the hoodlums and the hoodlums said ‘look, you brought us here and we are still here’.

“There are certain world powers that want to destroy our country. That is what I believe. There was a container load of weapons that were brought in from Turkey. Another time some were brought in from Iran. But nobody probed further and everything was swept under the carpet and that was the end of it.

He added that bandit is not the  appropriate word to describe those unleashing terror on the people because the people in question bear sophisticated weapons and rocket, hence they are terrorists not bandits.

“I do not believe that the Niger Delta militancy can be compared to the terrorists. These people (terrorists) are not even bandits. A bandit is a common thief or a brigand. The ‘agbero’ are bandits. These people carrying sophisticated weapons and rockets are not bandits. They are terrorists.

“They have killed, they have maimed, they have raped and they have wreaked havoc.”

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