The former Southeast spokesman to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Denge Josef Onoh, has warned erstwhile President Goodluck Jonathan that his comments about Boko Haram insurgency carry grave implications.
Naijaonpoint reports that Jonathan had earlier claimed that Boko Haram insurgents nominated the late President Muhammadu Buhari as their negotiator during his administration.
Reacting in a statement in Abuja on Saturday, Onoh argued that the statement is insensitive considering that Buhari recently passed away and his family is still in mourning.
He maintained that it would be wise for Jonathan to exercise constraint and decorum as a former president.
He said, “To publicly associate a deceased leader with such a sensitive and unverified claim risks casting a shadow over his legacy and inflicts unnecessary pain on his loved ones.
“As a former president, you are expected to uphold the highest moral standards, demonstrating restraint and decorum, particularly when discussing matters involving a departed colleague who can no longer respond or clarify such claims. Your disclosure, especially in the context of Nigeria’s polarized political climate, appears to serve no constructive purpose and instead fuels division and mistrust.
“Secondly, his statement disregards the sanctity of classified security matters. As a former head of state, you are privy to the fact that certain sensitive issues, particularly those involving national security, are deliberately shielded from public consumption to protect the nation’s stability and the integrity of its institutions.
“During his lifetime, former President Buhari refrained from making public remarks about your administration’s handling of the Niger Delta militancy, respecting the unwritten code of discretion expected of leaders. By choosing to reveal this alleged nomination of Buhari by Boko Haram, you have breached this code, setting a dangerous precedent that undermines the confidentiality critical to governance and national security.”
He noted that it was particularly concerning given the timing of Jonathan’s statement, which coincided with speculations about his potential presidential candidacy in 2027, saying that such disclosures risk being perceived as politically motivated, diminishing his stature as a statesman and suggesting that personal ambitions may be influencing his public utterances.
He added, “The negative implications of your statement are manifold. By waiting until the build-up to the 2027 elections to make this claim, you have inadvertently cast doubt on your intentions, leading many Nigerians to question whether this revelation is an attempt to score political points rather than contribute to a meaningful discourse on the Boko Haram crisis.”
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