Former President says there's a plot against him

Former President, Goodluck Jonathan, has warned Nigerians that there is a plot against him by unknown people to unleash a campaign of lies against him.

The former president took to his Facebook page on Sunday, March 25, 2018, to allege the plot, maintaining that he'll remain resolute and hope that the truth prevails.

He wrote, "It has been brought to my attention that while I am away promoting democracy in Sierra Leone, a campaign will be unleashed against me to falsely impugn my name using both faceless and identified persons.

"When I was in power I said my ambition is not worth the blood of any Nigerian. Even out of power, I continue to hold that belief.

"What I will say however, is that no matter how far and fast falsehood has traveled, it must eventually be overtaken by truth."

Corruption and manipulation

The former president has recently been in the news most notably for corruption during his tenure and attempted election manipulation during his reelection campaign in 2015.

While speaking on Monday, March 19, 2018, during the 7th presidential quarterly business forum in Abuja, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo accused the Jonathan administration of withdrawing N150billion from the federation account just days before the 2015 election .

He said, "In one single transaction, a few weeks to the 2015 elections, sums of N100billion and $295million were just frittered away by a few."

The former president responded to the allegations through his former aide, Reno Omokri, saying that the Vice President should provide proof.

"On this most recent allegation, let me state categorically that Jonathan did not share N150 billion two weeks to the 2015 election. If Osinbajo has proof that Jonathan did so, then we challenge him to publish his proof," Omokri said.

In new revelations that emerged last week, The Guardian UK revealed that an unnamed Nigerian billionaire paid £2m to a foreign data company called to influence the vote for Jonathan.

Cambridge Analytica staff were flown to Nigeria, Israeli hackers were hired to break into then-opponent Muhammadu Buhari's emails to exhume his financial and medical records. Staff were also handed videos put together to scare voters in Buhari's stronghold of the north.

The Cambridge Analytica team were lodged in a hotel in Abuja a few weeks to the presidential election and worked on a communications campaign for Jonathan.

The Israeli intelligence operatives who worked with Cambridge Analytica during this period claimed that France and Israel wanted Jonathan to win the presidential election.

Even though The Guardian UK reported that Jonathan was most likely unaware of the hiring of Cambridge Analytica, his name has been dragged through the scandal.