A civil society organization, Centre for Policy Advocacy and Leadership Development, part of a coalition that recently called for the resignation of Deputy Senate President Ovie Omo-Agege from his position in the senate has withdrawn from the action.
Coalition of civil society and youth groups led by Comrade Solomon Adodo, had last week called on Omo-Agege to resign from his position as Deputy Senate President and also vacate his seat as senator representing Delta Central Senatorial District, or face a suit in the law court.
Adodo’s coalition hinged its call on alleged conviction of Omo-Agege in the United States of America (USA), an allegation the Deputy Senate President in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Yemi Odenuga, immediately debunked.
However, Amb. Edwin Olorunfemi of Centre for Policy Advocacy and Leadership Development said his organization has withdrawn its allegations against the deputy senate president.
He stated this in a statement made available to Blueprint newspapers on Sunday.
He said the fact that Senator Omo-Agege had freely travelled to the USA “countless of times” since the alleged conviction and offence said to have been committed in the 1990s, was evidence of his acquittal of the allege crimes by the California Supreme Court.
“I cannot in good conscience allow my name to be used for the conscienceless onslaught against the innocent Deputy Senate President.
“Many Nigerians are aware that my name was included as part of a so-call coalition of civil society groups purportedly led by Solomon Adodo and which threatened to go to court and mobilise Nigerian youths against the National Assembly if Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ovie-Omo Agege was not removed with 72 hours.
“Ironically, while senator Omo-Agege has remained confidently unperturbed to the extent of directing his media team not to go into an all-out war against the source of mendacious allegations, I have come to realise that those allegations were totally not true and unfounded, and hereby withdraw with sincere apology my earlier involvement in the negative civil action,” Olorunfemi said.
Olorunfemi advised that for the interest of Nigeria, all should refrain from propaganda, just as he called on government at all levels to make more efforts in curbing unemployment and underemployment, which he said had spurred scores of youths into being used by the elite and civil society groups to score propaganda points against perceived rivals.
