Malam Garba Shehu, the President’s spokesman, said it is unjust and unfortunate for anyone to ask for the removal of a hardworking public servant because of a previous comment he or she made years back even though such statement was rejected by the affected individual.
Shehu stated this in a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday, April 22, 2021.
He also dismissed the ongoing campaign against Dr Isa Pantami, Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, saying that the Buhari administration stands by all Nigerians, including the minister.
“Today, there is an unfortunate fashion in public discourse that makes leaders in politics, religion, and civil society liable in the present for every statement they have ever made in the past no matter how long ago, and even after they have later rejected them.
”This insidious phenomenon seeks to cancel the careers of others based on a thing they have said, regardless of when they said it.
” Dr Isa Ali Pantami, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy is currently the target of a “cancel campaign” launched by those seeking his resignation.
”They don’t even care what he may or may not have said 20 years ago that’s just the tool they’re using to try to “cancel” him.
”However, they would benefit if he is prevented from making choices that change the lives of ordinary Nigerians.
”To his credit, the Minister has apologised for what he said in the early 2000s.
” His opinions were completely inappropriate at the time, and they would be unacceptable today if he repeats them.
”But he will not repeat them for he has publicly and permanently condemned his earlier utterances as wrong.”
According to the presidential aide, the minister was in his twenties in the 2000s; next year, he will be 50.
Pantami, according to Shehu, was intentionally targeted to discredit the Buhari administration’s accomplishments in the ICT industry.
He did, however, affirm the Buhari administration’s contribution to bettering the lives of all Nigerians.
He also outlined Pantami’s accomplishments in the Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy over the last two and a half years.
”This Administration is committed to improving the lives of all Nigerians, including ensuring that they are not overcharged or under-protected for the services on which modern life is based.
”The Minister has been at the forefront of the fight against fraudulent data deductions and pricing.
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”He has transformed the government’s virtual public interaction to answer to COVID-19 while saving taxpayers money.”He has founded ICT start-up centres to encourage youth entrepreneurship and job creation.
”He has changed policies to ensure that locally generated ICT content is used by ministries, beginning with his own; and he has deregistered about 9.2 million SIM cards, thereby ending the capacity of criminals and jihadists to access mobile networks openly and undetected.
”In two short years, Minister Pantami has increased the ICT sector’s contribution to GDP to more than 18 per cent, making it one of the top two, playing a crucial role in the economy’s recovery from the COVID 19-induced recession,” he added.
He also said that Pantami and the Buhari administration had created enemies by placing citizens first in all of their dealings.
“The minister and this government have made enemies,” Shehu said. There are those in the opposition who see progress and wish it to be stopped at all costs.
”And there is already well-reported evidence claiming that newspaper editors rebuffed an effort by some ICT firms to financially persuade them to run a smear campaign against the minister, all of whom stand to suffer financially as a result of reduced costs and better consumer rights.
The government is currently reviewing the veracity of these allegations of attempted inducement, and whether they are proven to be true, police and judicial intervention must be expected.
“The Administration stands by Minister Pantami and all Nigerian people to ensure equal care, fair costs, and fair rights in ICT services,” he said.
