The Director of Media and Publicity of the Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, on Sunday accused the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, General Muhammadu Buhari, of war crimes. Fani-Kayode, who spoke in Umuahia, the Abia State capital, said Buhari committed the crime during the Nigeria Civil War, which was fought from 1967 to 1970.
The PPDPCO spokesman said though the Igbos must have forgiven Buhari, he does not still deserve their votes.
He said, “We are in Umuahia to look into a very touching and mind boggling issue. We came into this beautiful city last night after a tour of some states in the Eastern region over the past three days.
“During our tour we met with some key Ibo leaders. We attended caucus meetings with them and the questions that kept on coming up on the issue of the presidential election centered on the role General Muhammadu Buhari played in the very sad events of the night of January 29, 1966, when a coup d’état took place in our country and when no less than 300 Igbo army officers, a sitting Head of State, General Aguiyi-Ironsi, and a serving Governor of the old Western Region, Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi, were killed in the most brutal fashion in less than 24 hours.
“It is important for us to look into this today, considering the fact that General Buhari is aspiring to be the next President of Nigeria.
“The Nigerian people have a right to know the truth about Buhari’s role in the tragic events of that night and they do not deserve to be kept in the dark. We deserve to know who did what, who to and how many times.
“That is the message that I got from most of the igbo leaders that I met on this tour and that is certainly the feeling of most Nigerians. The days of feeding our people with half-truths and telling them not to discuss the ugly events of the past are long over. It does not stop there.
“The other issues that were raised centered on the role General Buhari allegedly played during the very tragic events in the core north in the mid-60’s just before the civil war when no less than 100,000 innocent and defenceless Igbo civilians, mainly women and children, were killed within a period of three months by irate and well armed local mobs. Many have asked and wondered whether it is true that General Buhari was amongst those that covertly orchestrated and encouraged those killings and that supported the slaughter of these innocent and helpless citizens.
“We consider this issue most relevant today because this same man, who some people have alleged was involved in this carnage and genocide, is desperate to become the next President of Nigeria.”
