THE Presidency on Thursday conceded that the views expressed by the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Pantami, endorsing some terrorist groups in the past are unacceptable but said it stood resolutely with him because of his work for Nigerians.
The Presidency’s position was contained in a statement issued by Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President (Media and Publicity), where it blamed the minister’s travail on the opposition and some unnamed information and communication technology (ICT) companies.
It pointed out that the minister had righty apologised for the statements he made years ago, which he cannot now repeat. “The administration stands behind Pantami and all Nigerian citizens to ensure they receive fair treatment, fair prices and fair protection in ICT services,” the statement said
The Presidency noted what it said was an unfortunate fashion in public discourse that makes leaders in politics, religion and civil society liable in the present for every statement they have ever made in the past – no matter how long ago, and even after they have later rejected them.
The statement added: “This insidious phenomenon seeks to cancel the careers of others on the basis of a thing they have said, regardless of when they said it.
“The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami is, currently, subject to a ‘cancel campaign’ instigated by those who seek his removal. They do not really care what he may or may not have said some 20 years ago: that is merely the instrument they are using to attempt to ‘cancel’ him. But they will profit should he be stopped from making decisions that improve the lives of everyday Nigerians.
“The minister has, rightly, apologised for what he said in the early 2000s. The views were absolutely unacceptable then, and would be equally unacceptable today were he to repeat them. But he will not repeat them – for he has publicly and permanently condemned his earlier utterances as wrong.
“In the 2000s, the minister was a man in his twenties; next year he will be 50. Time has passed and people and their opinions – often rightly – change. “But all discerning Nigerians know this manufactured dispute is nothing to do with the minister’s prior words, but solely concern his actions in the present.”
The Presidency alleged that Pantami made enemies because he tried to put Nigeria first.
The statement added: “This administration is committed to improving the lives of all Nigerians – and that includes ensuring they are not overcharged or under-protected for those services on which modern life depends.
“The minister has been leading the charge against illegal data deductions and pricing; he has revolutionised the government’s virtual public engagement to respond to COVID-19 and save taxpayers’ money; he has established ICT startup centres to boost youth entrepreneurship and create jobs; he has changed policy to ensure locally produced ICT content is used by ministries, starting with his own; and he has deregistered some 9.2 million SIMs – ending the ability for criminals and terrorists to flagrantly use mobile networks undetected.
“In two short years, Minister Pantami has driven the contribution of the ICT sector to the GDP to more than 18 per cent, making it one of the top two playing a critical role in the emergence of the economy from the COVID 19-induced recession.
“In putting people first, the minister and this administration have made enemies. There are those in the opposition who see success and want it halted by any means. And there is now well-reported information that alleges newspaper editors rebuffed an attempt to financially induce them to run a smear campaign against the minister by some ICT companies, many of which do indeed stand to lose financially through lower prices and greater consumer protections.
“The government is now investigating the veracity behind these claims of attempted inducement, and – should they be found to hold credence – police and judicial action must be expected.”
Meanwhile, the Department of State Services (DSS) has refuted the statement credited to one of its former assistant directors, Mr Dennis Amachree, that Pantami scaled the screenings of the service before his confirmation as minister in 2019.
Spokesperson of the Service, Dr Peter Afunanya, in a terse message sent to newsmen in Abuja over Amachree’s views on the embattled minister, declared that comments were his personal positions and have nothing to do with the service. Dr Afunanya maintained that the position of the service’s former director did not in any way represent the stand of the secret police and urged the members of the public to disregard all his views.
Amachree, who spoke on Wednesday while featuring on an online interview programme, had said the minister must have sailed through the DSS and Senate screenings due to a lot of factors, including federal character balancing. Amachree, while also demanding Pantami’s resignation, had said the DSS had information on all individuals of interest, adding that the minister’s past extremist views were communicated to the Federal Government and the legislature.
According to him, “there is no information that escapes the DSS, we have all of it, all. During the vetting process for anybody to be appointed a minister or commissioner or anything, your name is sent to the SSS for vetting. They check your background up to the extent of your grandmother. They check your schools up to the extent of your primary school.
“And of course, they keep a tab on you online and offline. We get a lot from open-source intelligence and I can tell you that in Pantami’s case, we have it. But there is a political angle to it.”
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