Former Minister of Petroleum, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has denied granting an interview in London in which she begged President Bola Tinubu to grant her amnesty so that she can return to Nigeria.
Diezani who served as a minister under Goodluck Jonathan’s administration noted that she never granted an interview to Governor Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State who had claimed he spoke to her.
“I did not grant an interview to anyone and therefore did not say any of the things attributed to me. It is fake news concocted for reasons I do not know,” she told Premium Times.
Chronicle NG reports that the newspaper that published the “interview” has taken the story down.
In the supposed interview Diezani claimed that she is now a born-again Christian and in her second stage of cancer and she would take medication for the rest of her life.
She also admitted to having committed financial crimes and would like President Tinubu and Nigerians to forgive her so that she can return to the Black most populous country.
The interview which was reposted by Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC on Instagram, has now been deleted.
The EFCC has however denied posting the content on its Instagram page.
Reacting to the EFCC’s denial, the Peoples Democratic Party chapter in Zamfara State through its spokesperson, Abba Oando, slammed the EFCC and demanded the anti-graft agency issue an apology.
“Pulling down the fake story is not sufficient. The anti-corruption body should issue a disclaimer and promptly apologise for this avoidable and costly unprofessionalism,” the Zamfara PDP said.