The Middle Belt Forum says the ongoing legal dispute over allegations against former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai could provide an opportunity for people who claim to have suffered under his administration to present their accounts.
Speaking during an interview with ARISE News on Wednesday, the National Spokesperson of the Middle Belt Forum, Luka Biniyat, said victims and survivors of El-Rufai’s administration would come forward as witnesses if the matter proceeds to court.
“It’s an opportunity for all the victims, survivors of El-Rufai’s misrule, will come out in masses to substantiate as witnesses what the General, retired General said, that’s the Minister of Defence, General Badaru.”
Biniyat said the Middle Belt Forum believes it has a strong voice to speak on behalf of people it considers victims of the former governor’s administration.
He said the forum would not present evidence intended for legal proceedings on national television, insisting that such evidence should be brought before the appropriate court.
“Well, we cannot bring proof on national television and tender it until the courts ask for those evidence, or those witnesses.”
Biniyat also said the forum was prepared to bring people forward to testify if the matter reaches court.
“We are going to bring in people who are going to testify that, yes, he is complicit in the mass murder of, not only of Southern Kaduna, including the Shia and other people who were victim of his misrule by his actions and his inactions, and especially by his utterances.”
He rejected the suggestion that the controversy amounted to political victimisation of the former governor, arguing that Defence Minister Christopher Musa was responding to questions during a media interview.
“No, that’s a wrong perception. It was you, the media, that invited him for an interview, and in the course of interview, a question was put to him.”
Biniyat further called for an investigation into the conduct of El-Rufai’s administration, saying the latest controversy should prompt victims and other interested parties to seek greater scrutiny of his tenure.
“So, it has nothing to do with political victimization.”
He said the development should encourage those who claim to have been affected by El-Rufai’s administration to come together and push for an investigation.
“It is high time that all his victims with this issue that is cooking now, to come together and see how informal investigation can be made around his misrule.”
Biniyat also said he believed many people in Kaduna State who consider themselves victims of the former governor’s administration were supportive of the allegations made by the Defence Minister.
“The people that have been his victims, whether they are Muslims or they are Christians, are very happy that El-Rufai is being exposed in this manner.”
He maintained that the court proceedings, if they arise from the ongoing dispute, would provide an opportunity for those making allegations against the former governor to present their accounts.
Ojo Triumph
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