• How Petition Was Cooked Up, Army Defends Property Ownership

The recent controversy over property said to have been purchased by Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai in Dubai, may just be a tip of the iceberg as investigations reveal that, several plots may have been hatched to get him out of office, for daring to succeed where others
seem to be failing. nationalTRAIL investigations reveal that the issue of his property is just one issue as some suspicious people have been agoing around
trying to get a dossier on all his private investments, including making enquiries on the worth of his private residence and his farm which was developed using a bank loan A source close to him confirmed to us that, a lot of powerful individuals were not too pleased with the successes he seems to be recording against Boko Haram, given the fact that he may have tampered with their sources of business, by attempting to end Boko Haram. He said , the Army Boss had earlier been alerted of plans by a cabal to blackmail him, but did not seem to give it a thought. Indications to the effect that the petition was a hoax emerged with the denial by the Presidency on the receipt of it, coupled with the fact
that we could not trace any copy of the said petition in the records of the presidency, neither was it anywhere in the records of any of the anti graft agencies, giving the impression that it might as well be the of a cabal working to undo the Army boss. Against the background that Buratai has never made the issue of his property a secret, strengthen the suspicion that the intention was not merely to expose an issue of corruption per se, rather it smacks of either vendetta or blackmail or both, given the fact
the Army boss may have stepped on the toes of somebody or people very closely connected with his personal affairs, and who has a fair knowledge of his interactions. Our correspondent reports that, security experts are working on the theory that, the said petition written to the Presidency, the receipt of which has since been denied shows that, the COA may be up against some powerful forces, trying to frustrate him or divert his mind from concluding on the assignment ahead of him. This is even as the Nigerian
Army over the weekend clarified that the “two properties” owned by the Army Chief’s family in Dubai were paid for in installments through “personal savings three years ago”, which along with other personal assets have consistently been declared by General Buratai in his Assets Declaration Form as Commander Multinational Joint Task Force Commander and as Chief of Army Staff.” The Army Headquarters in a statement signed by Colonel Sani Kukasheka Usman ,Acting Director Army Public Relations stated clearly, there seems to be rounds of campaign of calumny against the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Yusufu Buratai and his family by some unscrupulous elements as contained in Sahara Reporters story titled “Revealed: Buhari’s Chief Of Army Staff, General Buratai, Wives Own Dubai Property”, alleging that Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Tukur Buratai, and his two wives are joint owners of a Dubai property that was paid for in one transaction posted on the website. “It is important to know that these baseless allegations were not new. In March this year, some groups of individuals under the aegis of “Concerned Citizens”, tried same smear campaign to their disappointment; it could not fly, because it is not true “You will recall early this week, there was similar campaign of calumny by yet another online news medium, The Cable, in which among other things, it alleged that wounded in action Nigerian Army personnel were abandoned by the Army, government and the nation which is not true. Therefore, the latest round of smear campaign by Sahara Reporters is one of the series of campaigns of calumny by these faceless individuals to malign the Chief of Army Staff and the Nigerian Army. Yet, typical of blackmailers and mischief makers despite failures, they did not give up, hence they now found a willing accomplice reputed for muckraking like the Sahara Reporters. The online news medium this evening uploaded another campaign of calumny allegedly based on a petition by obviously fake and non-existent group it described as “Concerned Soldiers and Officers From the North East”. “The allegations contained in the Sahara Reporters write up are baseless and not correct. It is a fact that the Buratai family have two properties in Dubai that were paid for instamentally through personal savings three years ago. This, along with other personal assets have consistently been declared by General Buratai in his Assets Declaration Form as Commander Multinational Joint Task Force Commander and as Chief of Army Staff. “It is pertinent to state that the Chief of Army Staff does not have any account with Skye Bank as alleged, let alone making deposits in the imaginary bank account to the tune of the amount stated in the write up. Similarly, he has not been involved in any form of shady or dishonest transaction, not to talk of “contract scam”.
“In addition, General Buratai was never near either Defence Headquarters or Army Headquarters in 2013. It is pertinent to also note that he was never a Director of procurement in Army Headquarters as alleged. As a matter of fact, the Nigerian Army never had a Directorate of Procurement till when he established one last year when he became Chief of Army Staff. “In a bid to rubbish the hard earned reputation and good name of the Chief of Army Staff, these blackmailers will stop at nothing hence all these kinds of mudslinging. It is really worrisome that some people could condescend so low to fabricate baseless allegation against the Chief of Army Staff for reasons that could best be described as mischievous. It is equally worrisome that Sahara Reporters could lend space for this obvious mischief. We really do not believe that it is because the price is right. “Consequently, the public and indeed all well meaning persons should disregard this round of campaign of calumny against the Chief of Army Staff and similar ones because they are baseless and unfounded. “For the unscrupulous elements and their cohorts, these campaigns would prod the Nigerian Army and indeed the Chief of Army Staff to continue to serve the nation diligently and with utmost zeal.”