caption: President Jonathan's spokesman, Reuben Abati
By SaharaReporters, New York
The presidency on Thursday evening issued another denial that the government ordered customized gold iPhones from a Dubai-based British company to mark the country’s 53rd independence anniversary next month. The report was first published on Tuesday by The Independent, a London-based newspaper.
In yet another official reaction, presidential spokesman Reuben Abati described the report as not only false and misleading, but utterly mischievous.
“It is instructive that despite the refutation of the story by the company, which ought to have laid the mischief to rest, a number of politically-minded news media continue to insist on promoting the blatant falsehood,” the statement said. “We deplore their antics as yet another attempt to use any trick or means possible to discredit President Jonathan’s well-meaning, hardworking and focused administration.”
He said the administration would not depart from its “established habit” of what he described as prudent management of resources and modest celebration of the national anniversary.
“We do not see any justification for such extravagance either now or at any other time. The Jonathan administration’s gold standard is to continue to provide responsible, committed, and result-oriented leadership, not to engage in the purchase and distribution of party gifts.”
He noted that the Dubai-based firm has said that the order for the said 53 gold Iphones was placed by a private individual and not the Nigerian Government, and urged the company to go ahead and disclose the identity of that individual.
Only yesterday, reporter Simon Usborne, who wrote the original story for The Independent, refused to retract the story, saying what he had published was what Amjad Ali, the British owner of Gold and Co., had told him. The reporter suggested that Gold and Co was trying to re-script the interview perhaps in reaction to the attention and angry reaction of Nigerians.
“Seems boss of @goldandco got carried away,” Usborne tweeted. “He now tells me a Nigerian individual – not the govt. – ordered 53 anniversary gold iPhones.”
The Jonathan government, struggling with an increasingly negative image on account of various scandals, yesterday offered two denials, one by Reno Omokri, Jonathan’s social media assistant, and the other by Joseph Mutah, the Press Secretary to the Minister of Information.
Full text of the statement:
STATE HOUSE PRESS RELEASE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT DID NOT ORDER CUSTOMISED GOLD IPHONES FOR OCTOBER 1
We consider the reports in a section of the media claiming that the Nigerian government had ordered customized gold iPhones from a Dubai-based company to mark the country’s 53rd independence anniversary in October not only false and misleading, but utterly mischievous.
It is instructive that despite the refutation of the story by the company, which ought to have laid the mischief to rest, a number of politically-minded news media continue to insist on promoting the blatant falsehood. We deplore their antics as yet another attempt to use any trick or means possible to discredit President Jonathan’s well-meaning, hardworking and focused administration.
It is certainly a matter of public record and knowledge that since his assumption of office, President Jonathan has ensured that October 1 independence-day anniversaries are low-key, without any pomp or pageantry. Ironically, even this prudence generated criticisms from a cynical and opportunistic segment of the public which alleged, in 2011, and again in 2012, that the President was either too scared to celebrate or that the government was broke.
This administration has no intention to depart from its established habit of prudent management of resources and modest celebration of the country’s independence anniversary. This year, the public should be assured that the October 1 anniversary will also be low-keyed. Neither the Federal Government nor its agencies has ordered any gold iPhones to mark the anniversary.
We do not see any justification for such extravagance either now or at any other time. The Jonathan administration’s gold standard is to continue to provide responsible, committed, and result-oriented leadership, not to engage in the purchase and distribution of party gifts.
We urge the Dubai-based company, which has since said that the order for the said 53 gold i-phones was placed by a private individual and not the Nigerian Government, to go ahead and disclose the identity of that individual. We appeal to the public to beware of the increasing desperation of those with politically vested interests, seeking to pull down this administration. Their moral bankruptcy is condemnable.
The Jonathan administration will remain focused as it continues to serve the Nigerian people diligently.
Reuben Abati
Special Adviser to the President
(Media & Publicity)
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