The Nigerian Presidency has said it is in support of the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ali Pantami, declaring his current ordeals are the handiwork of his enemies.
It said the demands for Pantami’s sack or resignation are meant to ‘cancel’ him.
In a statement issued by Mallam Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity the Presidency alleged that the recent calls for the sack or resignation of the minister are being sponsored by the opposition and some unnamed Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
While noting that the comments for which Pantami has come under fire were wrong and in bad taste, the Presidency said however that the minister had repented from the views and also apologized.
“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,” Shehu wrote.
“This insidious phenomenon seeks to cancel the careers of others on the basis of a thing they have said, regardless of when they said it.
In a bid to link the minister’s ordeals to interested parties in the communications industry, Shehu declared that Pantami has been leading the charge against illegal data deductions and pricing; changing the government’s virtual public engagement to respond to COVID-19 and saved taxpayers’ money.
“He has established ICT start-up centres to boost youth entrepreneurship and create jobs; he has changed policy to ensure locally produced ICT content is used by ministries, starting with his own; and he has deregistered some 9.2 million SIMs – ending the ability for criminals and terrorists to flagrantly use mobile networks undetected,” he said.
“The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy is, currently, subject to a “cancel campaign” instigated by those who seek his removal. They do not really care what he may or may not have said some 20 years ago: that is merely the instrument they are using to attempt to “cancel” him. But they will profit should he be stopped from making decisions that improve the lives of everyday Nigerians.
“The Minister has, rightly, apologized for what he said in the early 2000s. The views were absolutely unacceptable then and would be equally unacceptable today, were he to repeat them. But he will not repeat them – for he has publicly and permanently condemned his earlier utterances as wrong.
“In the 2000s, the minister was a man in his twenties; next year he will be 50. Time has passed, and people and their opinions – often rightly – change.
“But all discerning Nigerians know this manufactured dispute is nothing to do with the minister’s prior words, but solely concern his actions in the present.
The Presidency’s comments came as the House of Representatives said its members would be ready to discuss the minister’s issue.
There was a report on Thursday that the leadership of the House of Representatives had stopped a motion on the Minister’s issue by the Minority Leader, Ndidi Elumelu, from being presented on the floor of House on Thursday.
However, the Chairman of the House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Benjamin Kalu, in a statement said the house would debate the Minister’s matter when it was properly presented.
“The House will hear Rep Elumelu’s call for Pantami’s resignation when it is properly presented before it,” Kalu said.
“The House is aware of several publications on online and traditional media claiming that the Speaker of the House, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila, blocked a motion by the Minority Leader of the House, Ndudi Elumelu, purportedly demanding the resignation of the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami.”
“For the avoidance of doubt, the House is guided by the Standing Orders of the House of Representatives (House Rules) in its operations and administration. In this case, the Minority Leader should have known better than to present such an issue for debate via Order 6 of the House Rules which only applies to Legislative Privileges.
“He ought to have come under Order 8 Rule 4, as a matter of urgent national importance, or via a motion on notice to enable other members to second the motion and make their contributions through debate in a truly democratic fashion, after which the House would be able to take a position on the issue.
“It is, therefore, pertinent to inform Nigerians that the House has not acted in error but in line with the provisions of its rules. All insinuations that the House did not allow democratic debate to take place on the important issue of Pantami’s resignation are simply untrue.
“As always, the House stands ready to give audience to Rep. Elumelu or any other member of the House on this issue, provided that such audience is sought through the proper channels and brought under the relevant rules of the House.”
