Sack Lai Mohammed, Garba Shehu Now - CNPP Tells Buhari

The CNPP submitted that the two top government officials have become images of falsehood in the minds of Nigerians.

The CNPP statement signed by its Secretary-General, Chief Willy Ezugwu on Sunday said the Buhari administration will regain some credibility if it sacks the two officials for always lying to Nigerians and the international community.

It maintained that the two officials in a bit to defend the current administration have only succeeded in dragging the integrity of the Buhari administration in the mud.

"The Minister of Information, Lai Muhammed and a presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, are two major liabilities that have contributed to the poor image of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) administration.ÔÇØ

"President Muhammadu Buhari government would have been perceived in a better light without the duo.

"To most Nigerians, the Minister of Information represents a face of misinformation, just like the presidential adviser, Garba Shehu and their responses or reactions to national issues have continued to put in present government sincerity in doubt.

"For instance, when did the Minister of Information realize that Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index is unreliable?

"The Minister has been working very hard, albeit unsuccessfully, to discredit the current corruption rating of Nigeria among the most corrupted in the world.

"However, the CNPP recalls that as an opposition spokesman, the Minister had at no time doubted the TI CPI on Nigeria.

"Less than eight years ago, Lai Muhammed described Nigeria's low corruption rating as a reflection of harvest of corruption scandals under then President Goodluck Jonathan administration, which he claimed was attested to by TI.

"He once urged then President Jonathan to "wake from his slumber and face the reality that corruption is fast eating deep into the soul of NigeriaÔÇØ, based on low corruption rating.

"How come the Minister of Information is busy trying to discredit an organization he had always hailed as opposition spokesman?

"Nearly five years after Lai Muhammed declared that insurgents have been technically defeated, the President Buhari administration has not been able to proactively stopped Boko Haram insurgents, rather, new phases of terrorism like banditry and killer headers activities took a turn for the worse.

"Just like the perception of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration on security has changed, with renewed hope since the sack of the former Service Chiefs, we urge President Buhari to give his administration a fresh breathe by firing the two top information managersÔÇØ, the CNPP said.

Meanwhile, the Presidency has said President Muhammadu Buhari did not violate COVID-19 protocols in Daura, Katsina State, accusing the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of making a fuse out of nothing.