*I am not afraid of death, he said
*If I wanted to deceive like some do, I will keep quiet
By Myke Uzendu and Daniel Tyoukua
Former Director of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and former Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Dr. Obadiah Mailafia, yesterday claimed that “powerful forces” have perfected plans to kill him.
He said they were after his life because he spoke against the genocide taking place in Southern Kaduna.
Dr. Mailafia lamented that “instead of security agencies, taking proactive actions to stop further killings in Southern Kaduna and genocide taking place in other parts of the country, and coming up with strategic plans that will ensure that the killings come to an end, forces are rather ganging up to silence me”.
The ex-banker who also suddenly resigned as Directing Staff at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, Jos, spoke to our correspondent in an exclusive interview, while reacting to the third summon by the Department of State Security (DSS).
He however told The AUTHORITY that he will honour the invitation.
He said: “I suspect that certain powers above them (DSS) are manipulating the situation, and some people want to silence me forever; that is my belief now because I have been talking.
“Some people have even vowed that I should be eliminated; that is the context. But I am a child of God and I am speaking for millions of Nigerians who have no voice.
“I am speaking for thousands of martyrs, holy martyrs, children, widows, oh my God (sobbing) who have been killed for no just cause. God has saved me to speak for them and there is no powers that can silence me because I am speaking for the holy martyrs. I am not afraid of anybody.
“I respect all constituted authorities, and I am not trying to be sanctimonious or anything, I also pray for the authorities that God will give them wisdom and grace.
“But if they commit evil, then we must call it by its name. If something is evil, don’t say that it is good, it is a sin before God and humanity.
“I saw evil and I called it by its name. They should face that reality and stop tormenting me.
“I have never stolen; I have never defrauded anybody and I have no negative police record.
“I worked for over 25 years abroad. I don’t even have a criminal record or a police ticket on traffic violation.
“I worked in a very sensitive place. I worked in banking and finance. I was Chief of Staff in one of the biggest international organization in the world, ACP Group.
“I have an unblemished record. So it’s now in my country that people will be charging me with criminality, I don’t understand it.
“Ok, if I had wanted actually to have a fantastic life, I will just keep quiet and then lobby for some cozy jobs and then be driving big cars and then be throwing dust on the poor people’s faces and calling myself a big man. Is that not what they are doing? What a hollow life, what a bankrupt and evil life.
“If it is because I spoke for the poor people, for victims of genocide, then nobody can do anything to me because my life is in the hand of God”.
Mailafia has been under investigation by the secret police after he revealed that a governor from the northern part of the country is a Boko Haram commander.
He also said that the sect will begin civil war in the country by 2022 and that they have taken over all the forests in the southern parts of the country.
The interview that sparked off his ordeal was conducted by the Nigeria Info 99.3FM, Lagos, and had attracted a fine of N5 million on the station by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) under the contentious Hate Speech Act.
