Following media reports that former President Goodluck Jonathan has fled to Côte De Ivoire to avoid arrest, one of his close associates, Senator Nimi Bariagha Amange, says the report is false.
Amange described the report as a figment of the writer’s imagination, noting that he still spoke to the former president on Friday, May 20.
Speaking in an interview, the Senator said: “I spoke with the former President on Friday. He told me that he was going to London to spend some times with his children. He did not indicate that he was under any stress and did not tell me that he was going on exile. What he said was that he would have loved to be at the Peoples Democratic Party convention in Portharcourt but he couldn’t make it because he needed to be with his children. He told me that he was in touch with the leaders of the party across board and assured me that the crisis in the party would be resolved. It is not true that he is on exile.”
In further defence of Jonathan, Amange said the former president should be getting commendations for serving his country diligently.
“The president has no reason to go on exile. He has not committed any offence. Please ignore the report about his exile. He will certainly come back to the country when he is through with spending time with his children,” he said.
In the report, which was first published by a national newspaper, Jonathan was alleged to have gone on exile to avoid a possible arrest by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over some alleged fraudulent deals during his administration.
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