The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation has said that wife of President Goodluck Jonathan, Patience, will not appear before the International Criminal Court.
It said there was no basis for her to be reported to the international court in the first place.
The Director of Media and Publicity of the organisation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, stated this at a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday.
Fani-Kayode was reacting to the claim by the main opposition party, the All Progressives Congress, that it had reported the President’s wife to the ICC.
Patience was reported to have told supporters of the PDP at its rally in Cross River State to stone anyone canvassing for change in the state.
“Change” is the slogan of the APC.
In its complaint to the ICC, the APC through its Director-General, Presidential Campaign Council, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, who is also the Governor of Rivers State, said the wife of the President was calling on the supporters of the ruling party to attack those of the APC.
But Fani-Kayode described Patience as a woman of peace, adding that her speech didn’t propel anyone to take to violence.
The former Minister of Aviation added that those that dragged the wife of the President to ICC were not educated on issue of international law.
He said if they were, they would have known that individuals were not taken to the court on the basis of their speech.
He said, “It is pertinent to note that, first of all, if they were a little better educated and had a better understanding of international law and how the ICC works, they would appreciate the fact that no individual is ever taken to the ICC based on what he or she has said unless and until people act on those words and massacre others.
“It is only if that speech is followed by violence and mayhem or if it incites people to commit violence, which results in death, mass murder and crimes against humanity, that the person who indulged in such hate speech becomes an eligible candidate for the ICC.
“Dame Patience Jonathan is a woman of peace. She did not threaten anyone with violence; she did not incite anyone to commit violence or to kill others and her words have not resulted in death, mass murder or any crimes against humanity.
“We therefore completely reject the baseless charge and assertion that she has called for the killing or slaughter of anyone at any point in time.”
Fani-Kayode described the threat to take Patience to the ICC as not only absurd but also nothing more than an empty and boastful “ranting of a perfidious, desperate, decaying and dying political party and such threat will amount to nothing.”
He said that if anyone was to be taken to the court, it must be the presidential candidate of the APC, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari(retd.).
Fani-Kayode also alleged that the APC was planning hate documentary on the private lives of the President, his wife and that of the Minister of Petroleum, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke.
Diezani Alison-Maduekwe and other key government functionaries and members of his administration.
“The special operations and intelligence wing of my Directorate has been reliably informed that the opposition is planning to air a documentary about the private lives of President Jonathan, the First Lady and the Minister of Petroleum Resources. The documentary is riddled with falsehood and it is vulgar, smutty, cheap, shameful and salacious. This initiative is being spearheaded by the entire leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and is being funded and organised by two serving governors and one former governor who controls his state through his hand-picked stooge.
“Our response to this initiative is one of utter repugnance. That the opposition has degenerated to such a point that in response to legitimate questions that were raised about the record in public office of their Presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari and their de facto leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, in two major and widely viewed documentaries, the only recourse they have, rather than answering the questions put in those documentaries, is to try to humiliate, shame and disgrace our presidential candidate by making the most baseless and scandalous accusations about his private life. The truth is that this shameful course of action will not work and we shall not be distracted. Neither will we lose any sleep over it.
“We are, however, by this press conference, sending a clear signal to the three APC leaders that are funding and spearheading this initiative that it will not in any way serve the interest of their party or the interest of their Presidential candidate if they insist on treading that path or toeing that deplorable line. In the event of them insisting on treading this dangerous and dishonorable course, we reserve the right to respond fully and use all legitimate means to expose the inherent evil that these three individuals habitually and continuously manifest in both their private lives and whilst in public office.
“The truth is that they can say what they like about President Goodluck Jonathan, his family members and those close to him but one thing they cannot say is that, unlike one of the three individuals that is behind this disgraceful initiative, President Jonathan does not show an unhealthy interest in the affairs of little boys and he does not indulge in gross and perverse intimate acts with them in his spare time in an obscene, indecent, shameful and completely unacceptable manner.
“They can say whatever they like about our candidate but, unlike one of the three individuals that are behind this reprehensible initiative, it is not President Goodluck Jonathan that ended up eloping with and eventually marrying the house girl of his former leader.
“They can say whatever they like about President Jonathan but it is not our President who drove his own father into political oblivion, broke the poor man’s heart and sent him to an early grave in pain, tears, defeat and shame. Presidential Jonathan did not do any of these things. It is those that have insisted on engaging in this shameful and repugnant initiative that have done these things. They know who they are and, for now, we need not mention their names. At the appropriate time, we shall mention names and expose every aspect of the sordid life styles of these individuals and at that time the Nigerian people will judge for themselves.”
