A Plateau-based socio-political group, Plateau Regeneration Group, has written an open letter to President Bola Tinubu, raising alarm over what it described as an alleged plot by the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Nentawe Yilwatda, to harass Governor Caleb Mutfwang through the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
In the letter signed by its leader, Yatu Promise, the group accused Yilwatda of making “careless and incendiary” remarks that suggest the EFCC could be used as a political weapon against Governor Mutfwang, his family, and associates.
The group warned that such utterances, coming from the leader of the ruling party, not only undermine the credibility of the anti-graft agency but also cast a shadow on the integrity of President Tinubu’s administration.
“To casually, whether overtly or covertly, make suggestions that could ‘imply’ that an anti-graft agency might be dancing to the tune of political actors is to erode the fragile trust citizens still place in national institutions. And when such insinuations emanate from the very apex of a ruling party, they carry with them the dangerous force of legitimacy,,” it stated.
Yatu recalled that Plateau State is not unfamiliar with the wounds inflicted when federal institutions are weaponized for political conquest, recalling the “painful Dariye years” when the EFCC was allegedly reduced to a pawn in political vendettas.
It added that Yilwatda’s words were “reckless and capable of igniting unrest,” stressing that justice, once politicized, becomes oppression by another name.
“Our fears are not speculative. The APC National Chairman and his circle have ‘ostensibly’ in the past spoken boastfully of their ability to bend public institutions to partisan advantage and self aggrandizement,” the letter noted.
While reiterating its support for the federal government’s anti-corruption drive, the Plateau Regeneration Group urged Tinubu to caution Yilwatda and safeguard the impartiality of anti-graft agencies.
The group further called on the President to protect national institutions from political manipulation and reinforce responsible leadership by ensuring that political actors speak with restraint and maturity.
It asked that the President “Caution Mr. Nentawe Yilwatda,” adding that “the weight of his office as APC National Chairman demands maturity, restraint, and circumspection, not reckless utterances capable of stoking unrest in Plateau and beyond.”
The group vowed to resist any attempt to use the EFCC or other institutions to intimidate Governor Mutfwang, warning that the people of Plateau would not tolerate political witch-hunting.
“History teaches us that careless words have ignited conflicts more devastating than bullets. Nigeria stands at a crossroads where unity must be nurtured, not undermined,” the group stated.
