Fayose’s aide to Garba Shehu: Don’t take us back to military era

Fayose’s aide to Garba Shehu: Don’t take us back to military era
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By Our Reporter  on November 3, 2015   National
The warning that was reportedly given to Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose by a presidential  aide, Garba Shehu, over comments on the economy has been described as a mentality of military dictatorship.
 Special Assistant to the governor on Public Communication and New Media, Lere Olayinka, said in a statement issued in Ado-Ekiti yesterday that it was sad that the Presidency could be warning a Nigerian, who is heading one of the country’s federating units on what to say and what not to say.
 Olayinka, who said he was sure that Mallam Shehu must have spoken for himself, and not for President Mohammadu Buhari, noted that “Governor Fayose will continue to say the truth in the interest of Nigeria and its people because the governor is not one of those that will go underground because of political persecution.”
He said the economy is in serious recession, adding that; “the President himself attested to this when he said the country was broke and this has also been corroborated by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Group financial report, indicating that the corporation incurred a total loss of N120.07bn in the months of August and September.
“JP Morgan is also removing Nigeria from its Emerging Market Bond Index, a move analysts say, would have far reaching implications for the country’s dwindling economy as investors could move their funds to competing countries, resulting in higher lending rates.
“It is therefore, a sad reminder of the military era that in a democracy, under a federation in which all federating units enjoy some degree of autonomy, the Presidency is warning a state governor on what to say and what not to say.
“Top functionaries of the All Progressives Congress (APC), including governors criticised the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) government of Dr Goodluck Jonathan, the Presidency did not go about warning them.
“Certainly, these people working with the President need to be purged of Acquired Immune Military Dictatorship Syndrome (AIMDS), even as they must be told that Governor Fayose won’t stop speaking his mind and exposing their hypocrisy in the overall interest of Nigeria and its people,” Olayinka said.
 The governor’s aide said “Nigerians are desirous of the change promised by the APC-led Federal Government, but as it stands, no clear direction yet.”