A former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar (retd), has denied having any link with any terrorist or bandit group within or outside the country.
Abubakar gave the clarification in a statement made available to newsmen in Minna on Monday which was signed on his behalf by his Media Aide, Dr. Yakubu Sulaiman.
The former Head of State described the claim of him having such link as “false unfounded and fake news”.
Apparently reacting to the arrest of a helicopter for supplying food and weapons to terrorists and bandits in parts of the country, which was said to belong to him in publications by some social media platforms, Abubakar said he did not own such a helicopter.
He dissociated himself from such ‘a heinous crime that is unbecoming of any patriotic citizen’, saying that he would have ignored such ‘spurious reports but had to set the record straight‘.
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‘This kind of fake news has the potential of aggravating the already tensed security situation in the country and should not be condoned,’ he said.
Abdusalami regretted that individuals could be so callous to peddle such news and smear the image and character of people, pointing out that: ‘I urge Nigerians to ignore such treacherous acts and be careful with the kind of information being dished out and shared on the social media.’
He further urged Nigerians to continue to work and pray for enduring peace in the country, because no nation can attain greatness without peace and security of lives and property of its citizenry.
Abdusalami recently has expressed grave concern over the proliferation of all calibre of weapons in the country, which he estimated at over six million.
He expressed dismay at the proliferation of weapons has heightened insecurity and led to over 80,000 deaths and close to three million Internally Displaced Persons (IDP).
AFRICA DAILY NEWS, NEW YORK
