Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami has denied buying cars for the delegates of the ruling party, All Progressive Congress (APC) in Kebbi state ahead of the party’s governorship primaries.
The West African Pilot News had reported that the Justice Minister gave out 200 exotic vehicles, which comprised 60 Toyota Prado SUVs, 65 Toyota RAV4 SUVs, 35 Mercedes Benz GLK 350 SUVs, and 40 Lexus LX SUVs, to party executives and delegates last Saturday.
The report had sparked different reactions with some claiming that Malami gave out the vehicles in a bid to get the governorship ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kebbi for the 2023 elections.
It also triggered a backlash from Nigerians who demanded that the minister be probed to unravel his source of income.
However, in an interactive session with newsmen on Tuesday in Birnin-Kebbi, Malami cleared the air on the allegations.
“At this moment, I have experienced a barrage of attacks, left, right, and centre, some are local and others international, an attack that has to do with an allegation that I shared many expensive vehicles to delegates of APC.
“As a person with some associates, neither I nor a friend of mine shared any vehicle to any delegate across the state,” he stated.
The minister took time to explain that the said vehicles were shared by his friends and associates who out of benevolent gesture decided to use their money to purchase the vehicles and distributed same to people they felt needed to have them through Khadimiyya Foundation.
He said, “Let me state categorically that some of the foundations, as Khadi Malami and Khadimiyya for Justice and Development Initiative I am associated with overtime, have workers who have demonstrated a greater capacity in the development of the state.
“These associations have contributed immensely in poverty alleviation, provision of social amenities to remotest areas, empowering unemployed youth and women, as well as small and medium-scale farmers and businessmen and women, among others, in the state.
“In appreciation of what the workers of the associations have been doing in the state and beyond, the supporters of the associations, collectively and individually, decided to solicit support from well-meaning Nigerians that have been supporting the NGOs in order to reward those that have been manning the affairs of the NGOs.”
He added, “I know I had an interactive session with APC stakeholders some days ago and had accepted calls from Kebbi people to run for the state governorship; the meeting was not for distribution of vehicles to any APC stakeholder.
“None of the APC stakeholders or delegates in Kebbi State was given any vehicle by me, and I have not yet donated any vehicle to any delegate.
“The mischief-makers can contact the National Secretariat of the APC, get the lists of all the APC stakeholders and delegates in Kebbi State.
“You too can do an investigative story to reach out to them, then you will realise how fictitious the claim is.
“Comparing the names of APC stakeholders with the beneficiaries would reveal to you that there is no connection between the two.”
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