Eromosele Ebhomele.

Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State, western Nigeria, said he has knowledge of plans by the ruling party and some of its members to destabilise his government and frustrate him for always telling the truth especially concerning national issues. He however vowed not to be cowed by threats from any quarter.

Fayose, a governor on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, also urged President Muhammadu Buhari to tread cautiously in his fight against corruption as many of those trudging him on are simply sycophants.

In a statement on Sunday by his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, the governor said Buhari must be mindful of the body language of those hailing him currently.He said: “The president should be cautious enough to know that the former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar-led National Peace Committee tactically told him to tread cautiously and be mindful of the fact that he is not heading a military government. Opposition is one of the roots on which democracy stands and any President or Governor that does not want opposition will eventually become a dictator. I want to state without fear or favour that I will continue to speak the truth no matter whose ox is gored. Nigeria belongs to all of us and no one can intimidate me or the good people of Ekiti State who freely and overwhelmingly gave me their mandate. Democracy as a form of government thrives on our ability to ask questions and get answers from leaders,” Fayose declared.

Urging the President to listen to the “wise counsel” from the General Abdulsalami Abubakar-led National Peace Committee, the governor added: “the Peace Committee has reminded the President that he is not heading a military government and with the calibre of Nigerians in the committee, their wise counsel should not be ignored. These are Nigerians who don’t need personal favours from the President and he should get the message very clearly that he is being told not to act as a dictator.”

Governor Fayose said the President should also know that Nigerians are not interested in any honeymoon, but their well-being. He argued: “Rather than concentrate and make a difference within his 100 days in office, the President’s greatest achievement so far is harassment of PDP leaders, appointment of his in-law and kinsmen into sensitive positions, selective fight against corruption and arrest and detention of INEC officials who worked in states won by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).”

However, Fayose declared support for the fight against corruption stressing: “fighting corruption should not be synonymous with convicting Nigerians on pages of newspapers. Rather, the judiciary and other relevant agencies should be allowed to do their jobs without any direct or indirect interference from the President and his party. Corruption must be fought in accordance with the laws of the land because going against the laws of the land and the oath taken by the President to respect the constitution in itself is corruption.”