Wike says President’s anti-corruption war is biased

Wike also criticized the government for forcing some corrupt officials to resign while pardoning those who are members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

He made the comments on Thursday, November 10, while delivering a speech at the 2016 annual conference of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, in Port Harcourt.

“We think the Federal Government must hold every public officer and everyone of us to the same standards of accountability,” Wike said according to Punch.

“It smacks of double standard for the Federal Government to force some public officers accused of corruption to step aside pending the conclusion of their cases, while keeping other public officers similarly accused in their public posts simply because they happen to be top members of the ruling party. Such inequities strike at the very essence of our moral values and rubbish the demand for character and personal integrity in public service.

“By resigning from his public position on account of the allegations of bribery against him, Muiz Banire (SAN), a former legal adviser of the All Progressives Congress, has proven to be a man who loves his character more than anything else.

“Let all those public officers with the smear of corruption step aside honourably and concentrate on clearing their names. We totally support our President’s fight against corruption. However, we are on our way to anarchy if we encourage or allow law enforcement agencies the latitude to abuse the fundamental rights of our citizens under the guise of fighting corruption,” he added.

Wike has repeatedly accused his predecessor, Rotimi Amaechi, who is an APC member, of corruption.

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Amaechi has however denied the claims and urged anyone with evidence against him to present it to the courts.