The US4US Movement notes with grave concern the malicious and vile propaganda making the rounds on various news platforms, seeking the removal of the Honourable Minister for State Defence, Bello Matawalle. This publication, which has since gone viral, and obviously a handiwork of faceless hirelings masquerading under the auspices of APC AKIDA FORUM and ZAMFARA ALTERNATIVE FORUM
claimed that the Honourable Minister is “unfit to be a member of the Renewed Hope Cabinet” as he was allegedly indicted in the $2.1billion Arms Deal Scandal involving the former National Security Adviser and another #70billion fraud allegedly uncovered during his tenure as Governor of Zamfara State, amongst other frivolous and tenuous accusations.
While it is instructive not to argue the merit of this new found anti-corruption crusade by the self-acclaimed APC AKIDA FORUM and ZAMFARA ALTERNATIVE FORUM, as the Arms Deal matter has been a subject of investigation by the EFCC for years, and should not be reduced to a matter of Social Media tantrums and rabble-rousing. We are however, worried about the real intention of this emergency anti-corruption crusaders, coming barely few weeks after the Honourable Minister called on Northern Leaders, especially the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) to support the administration of President Tinubu.
One wonders if this is another case of calling a dog a bad name in order to hang the dog. It’s no secret that the Minister’s patriotic call few weeks ago, on the Leaders of the North to support President Tinubu, ruffled not a few feathers. The owl cries at night and the baby dies in the morning; isn’t there a correlation between the owl and the death of the child? Are these men truly seeking justice or are they doing a hatchet job for the enemies of President Tinubu? Are these men truly after the Minister or are they pursuing an agenda against the President ahead of 2027? Why the sudden hullabaloo against the Minister, few weeks after his face-off with some “self-serving” Northern Leaders.
While we are not against anybody or group calling for investigation of Public Office holders, we are worried that this indiscriminate act of social media trial against Office holders smells doom for our Nation. We are concerned that this approach of preempting our anti-graft agency is tantamount to placing the cart before the horse, and a clog on the wheel of our collective progress as a Nation. We call on the President to exercise discretion in his approach and not to necessarily budge on the heinous expectations of these hatchet men, who are obviously flying the same kite they flew against Dr. Betta Edu, Nyesom Wike, Ojo, and now Matawalle. It is crystal clear that the Honourable Minister is a victim of calculated attempt by desperate power-grabbers to chisel him out of President Tinubu’s cabinet, so as to achieve their inglorious target against Mr. President. As a group, we frown at the antics of this rabble-rousers, as it is a joke taken too far.
Signed
Umezulike Desmond Cruz
National Publicity Secretary
Us4Us Movement.
