Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, has accused the Federal Government of using the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to harass him and officials of his administration over his refusal to defect to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), warning that continued pressure would provoke a political confrontation.
The governor made the allegation on Wednesday at the Government House in Bauchi after receiving an ambassadorial award for safety from the Institute of Safety Professionals in Nigeria.
Governor Mohammed, who is also Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum, said one of his commissioners is currently being detained by the EFCC, describing the action as politically motivated.
“As a governor and the head of the opposition, my commissioner has been kept and will not be released by the EFCC,” he said. “Even when I have immunity as a governor, my name was stupendously mentioned in a motion in a court of law in Nigeria. Me, Bala Mohammed.”
He accused the APC-led Federal Government of deploying state institutions, including the EFCC and the judiciary, to intimidate and persecute opposition figures.
“The APC-led federal government thinks they can use the courts and institutions of government, like the EFCC, to persecute and prosecute Nigerians who are not within their own party,” he said.
Mohammed insisted that no amount of pressure or harassment would force him to join the APC, noting that his silence in the past was in the interest of national peace and security.
However, he warned that he would no longer remain quiet if the alleged persecution continued.
“If they don’t stop, we are going to declare war. I assure you we are not going to keep quiet any longer. I won’t allow anybody to criminalise me because I’m not in their party. I refuse to join their party, and I will not join their party,” the governor said.
The Bauchi governor further alleged that despite controlling about 51 per cent of national resources, the Federal Government had made no tangible contributions to development in the state.
“In my state, they have not provided one kilometre of road. They have not provided water. Even the security agencies—I’m the one paying them to work for us—and they still have the guts to talk,” he said.
He also criticised the Federal Government’s tax policies, warning that they could worsen the economic hardship faced by Nigerians if not urgently reviewed.
The comments come amid reports that the EFCC recently filed fresh criminal charges against the Bauchi State Commissioner for Finance, Yakubu Adamu, and others over alleged terrorism financing involving about $9.7 million.
The EFCC has yet to respond publicly to the allegations made by the Bauchi State governor.
