Betta Edu: Ohaneze Youth Wing Backs Tinubu, Condemns Media
The Youth Wing of the pan Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohaneze Ndi-Igbo, has commended President Bola Tinubu for being proactive in handling the allegation against the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Dr. Betta Edu.
Speaking at a news conference on Sunday, January 14, the National Youth Leader of the organisation, Chukwuma Okpalaezeukwu also commended the president for ordering an investigation into the allegation and the National Social Investment Programme.
Okpalaezeukwu however condemned what he termed the media trial of the suspended Minister while asking Nigerians to give her the n before of doubt until the investigations ordered by the President are concluded.
According to him, since the Accountant General of the Federation has said she did not honour the memo from the minister, it may be out of place to accuse her of diverting public funds, while the issues against her could also pale down to the propriety of routing the memo, and perhaps the request for the sum to be paid into a personal account of a project accountant.
He said if the Minister is found to have committed some administrative infractions and not necessarily monetary diversion, the President should review her suspension and allow her to continue as a member of his cabinet.
He said: “Ohanaeze Ndi-Igbo Youth Wing commends President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, for his proactiveness and adherence to the Rule of Law on the issue of the recently suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr Betta Edu.
“We also thank him for setting up a presidential panel to investigate the veracity of the allegations instead of sacking her outright.
“Consequently, we hereby wish to rally support for the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr Edu, by calling on Nigerians to allow her a fair hearing and let the ongoing investigation run its course without media trial.
“Nigerians should give her the benefit of the doubt until the series of investigations into her involvement in the alleged N583m financial wrongdoing have proved her to be complicit.
“Judging by the actions of some persons in the media, it is obvious that there is too much media trial around Dr Edu and those who wanted her out of favour with the Federal Government are sustaining the spins to her disadvantage.
“Media trial is unfair. An allegation has been levelled against her, and President Bola Tinubu, in his wisdom, had suspended her to allow for a transparent and unimpeded investigation. The best thing to do in the circumstance is to allow the process of investigation to conclude instead of crucifying her as if she had been found to be guilty.
“There is the need to find what the problem really was about the memo she put up to the Accountant General of the Federation, although, the Accountant General had said that she did not honour the payment.
“If that was correct and we also give her (Accountant General) the benefit of the doubt that she would not have lied, then the subject of investigation of the N583 million could as well pale down to the propriety of routing the memo, and perhaps the request for the sum to be paid into a personal account of a Project Accountant.
