Former President Goodluck Jonathan has dismissed claims that he accused late former President Muhammadu Buhari of having ties with the Boko Haram insurgency.
Jonathan, in a statement issued by his spokesman, Ikechukwu Eze, said his comments at the public presentation of a book by former Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor, were “grossly misrepresented” by some sections of the media.
“The attention of the Office of Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has been drawn to misleading reports circulating in sections of the media suggesting that Dr. Jonathan alleged that Boko Haram nominated the late President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, to represent them in dialogue with the Federal Government, and therefore this made him somehow complicit in the Boko Haram crisis,” the statement read.
Eze clarified that Jonathan “at no time did … suggest, imply, or insinuate that President Buhari had any connection with Boko Haram or that he supported the group in any form.”
According to the former president, his remarks during the event were part of a broader reflection on Nigeria’s security challenges and aimed at highlighting “the deviousness and manipulative strategies employed by Boko Haram in their early years.”
Jonathan explained that his reference was to a well-documented episode when “various individuals and factions falsely claimed to represent the terrorist group and purported to name prominent Nigerians as possible mediators, without those individuals’ knowledge or consent.”
He stressed that his point was to illustrate how Boko Haram, “in its characteristic deceit, often invoked the names of respected public figures to sow confusion, exploit political divisions, and undermine public confidence in government.”
Jonathan further posed a rhetorical question: “if indeed Buhari was their choice negotiator, why didn’t Boko Haram expeditiously bring their evil terrorist agenda to an end when the retired General became president?”
The statement urged Nigerians to ignore misrepresentations of his remarks, reiterating Jonathan’s commitment to peace and democracy.
“The Office of the Former President therefore urges the public to disregard any misinterpretation of his remarks. Dr. Jonathan remains committed to peace, unity, and the strengthening of democratic values in Nigeria. He believes that the nation’s progress depends on a truthful understanding of its challenges, not on the distortion of facts for political or sensational purposes,” it added.
