DSS
DSS denies Yari’s arrest. The Department of State Services disputed on Sunday that Senator Abdulaziz Yari was arrested for refusing to answer President Bola Tinubu’s phone call.
Dr Peter Afunanya, the DSS’s spokesman, issued a statement on Sunday.
The claim was branded as “laughable and insignificant” in a statement made on the DSS’s Twitter account.
While acknowledging that Yari was invited by the DSS, Afunanya stated in the statement that the senator was aware of the purpose for his invitation.
He also disputed allegations that the Service was spying on Presidential Election Petition Tribunal judges.
Afunanya also rejected accusations that the Service attacked the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Commission and the Code of Conduct Bureau, stealing files.
He debunked reports that there is a rumble in the DSS due to nepotism.
He claimed that the Service would not have replied to the errors if it had not been for the “fickle-minded and vulnerable persons as well as the unsuspecting public” who would take the lies for facts.
“The attention of the Department of State Services has been drawn to false reports by sections of the online media, particularly SaharaReporters, Peoples Gazette, and Jackson Ude,” Afunanya stated in the statement.
“Various and incorrectly, so-called news platforms fed the public misleading narratives and accusations against the Service.”
“For example, SaharaReporters reported that the Service stormed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and carted away certain files.”
“Jackson Ude wrongly claimed that the DSS is in turmoil due to nepotism. He further accused the Service of spying on Presidential Election Petition Tribunal Judges.
“On its part, Peoples Gazette reported that Senator Abdulaziz Yari was arrested for alleged refusal to pick up the President’s phone call (whatever that meant).
“Other unsubstantiated and anonymous petitions are circulating against the DGSS, his family, and some officials.”
“To clarify, the DSS did not carry out operations at the ICPC and CCB or remove files from their offices.”
“Instructively, the two agencies have rejected the news in widely disseminated press comments on their own. It is petty, if not laughable, to report that Yari was invited for refusing to pick up the President’s call. This is the height of junk journalism. Yari knows why he was invited.
“In fact, the Service denies all of the allegations because they lack any factual or credible basis.” They are nothing more than figments of the authors’ imaginations.
“This is especially true given the publishers in question’s reputation in and outside the country for peddling fake news, sensationalism, and gutter journalism.” “Without a shred of decency or civility, they engage in character assassination and various forms of blackmail as a business,” the statement continued.