In Defence Of Terrorists: ‘Repentant’ Pantami Recants Radical Comments
BY EDMOND ODOK – The lure of holding on to public office as a member of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) has overwhelmed under fire Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Isa Pantami with his public renouncement of past radical comments and open support for global terrorist groups.
Against the backdrop of scathing public condemnation of his exposed soft spot for terrorist organizations on the world stage, including Taliban and Al-Qaeda, Pantami blamed youthful exuberance for his hitherto hard stance on the issue.
Speaking while answering questions during his daily Ramadan lecture at Annor Mosque in Abuja on Saturday, the embattled Minister said he was driven by his young age in making the radical comments that are now haunting him and generating controversies in the polity.
An obviously sober Pantami however claimed that having matured in age, he knows better and has “changed several positions taken in the past based on new evidence and maturity.”
Daily Trust quoted him as also claiming during the lecture that; “For 15 years, I have moved round the country while educating people about the dangers of terrorism. I have traveled to Katsina, Gombe, Borno, Kano states and Difa in Niger Republic to preach against terrorism.
“I have engaged those with Boko Haram ideologies in different places. I have been writing pamphlets in Hausa, English and Arabic. I have managed to bring back several young persons who have derailed from the right path.
“Some of the comments I made some years ago that are generating controversies now were based on my understanding of religious issues at the time, and I have changed several positions taken in the past based on new evidence and maturity.”
According to him; “I was young when I made some of the comments; I was in university, some of the comments were made when I was a teenager. I started preaching when I was 13, many scholars and individuals did not understand some of international events and therefore took some positions based on their understanding, some have come to change their positions later.”
Following the recent expose on him by some media outfits, there has been scathing condemnations of the Minister over his alleged link with terrorist groups.
In its trail, mounting pressure and calls have come from several quarters, especially the Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) demanding his resignation or immediate sack by President Muhammadu Buhari.
More so, the Nigerian social media community, especially Twitter, has also been awash with comments that given his antecedents and disposition towards global terrorism, it is a huge risk trusting the Minister with the sensitive national assets as Nigerians’ database.
Arguments in public circles centre around the ongoing National Identification Number (NIN) and Subscriber Identity Module integration exercise currently under Pantami’s watch.
