#AccountFreezing: Dele Momodu’s apologies to EFCC evidence he admits spreading Fake News – Gawat

By OUR REPORTER

On his twitter handle as captured, Chief Dele Momodu, said: “When news of the freezing of family accounts of the Adelekes was going viral, The Boss made a few calls to those who should be in the know and our source confirmed the story and even mentioned the accounts were in FCMB.  We hereby withdraw it with sincere apologies…” He said.

The apologies and announced withdrawal by Publisher of The BOSS Newspaper, Chief Dele Momodu, of Adeleke family’s “Account Freezing” report against the Nigeria’s main anti-corruption fighter, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), have been described as admittance by the senior journalist that he actually spread fake news against the government.

This was the position of many Nigerians, including a Lagos print media handler, Mr. Jubril A. Gawat, who got the shocker from Dele Momodu’s twitter handle Sunday night apologizing to the EFCC for the untrue news broken against it by the newspaper he publishes.

Giving the apology a bite, Gawat said it was admittance that the media outfit connected to the senior journalist, who has been on the lips of many Nigerians in recent times to be image launderer for politicians of questionable character in the country, actually spread fake news about the “Account Freezing” of the Adeleke family.

Gawat in a tweet making this known said, “FLASH: @DeleMomodu admits spreading FAKE NEWS about the “Account Freezing” of the accounts of the Adeleke family… apologizes for spreading FAKE NEWS”.

The DEFENDER late Sunday had reported that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) denied freezing the accounts of the Adeleke family at First City Monument Bank (FCMB).

The BOSS on Friday reportedly broke the news that the EFCC had frozen the politician’s account the accounts of the Adeleke family at First City Monument Bank (FCMB), which was politically construed in several quarters to be a clampdown by the Muhammadu Buhari-led government of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in ensuring the weakening of opposition in the Osun State gubernatorial content.

Refusing therefore to be dragged into politicization of any sort, the EFCC, in a statement by its Head, Media and Publicity, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, described the allegation as false.

Mr Uwujaren said the allegation was meant to dress the commission in a partisan garb.

“The attention of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC has been drawn to media publications alleging that it had frozen the account of Senator Ademola Adeleke, candidate of the opposition People’s Democratic Party, PDP, in the September 22, 2018 Osun State governorship election and those of his family members, including the musician, David Adeleke,” the statement read.

“The Commission calls on members the public to disregard the report, which is patently false and contrived to dress the agency with a partisan garb in the unfolding political contest in Osun State.

“For the avoidance of doubt, at no time did the EFCC place a freeze order on any account belonging to members of the Adeleke family.

“The purported freeze order which has unfortunately been amplified by pliable sections of the media without any attempt at confirmation, is alien to the Commission and another example of fake news.

“The EFCC frowns at the seeming attempts by faceless forces to drag it into the political fray and, for the umpteenth time, restates its neutrality as a law enforcement organization that is sworn to uphold the law at all times, irrespective whose interest is at stake.”

The denial followed the news broken on Friday by the said newspaper and which had gone viral without the media practitioners making their findings.

With Dele Momodu’s tweet of apology, The DEFENDER gathered, it is now clear that the purveyors of the “fake story” allowed it to go viral first before they worked on its authenticity.

On his twitter handle as captured, Chief Dele Momodu, said: “When news of the freezing of family accounts of the Adelekes was going viral, The Boss made a few calls to those who should be in the know and our source confirmed the story and even mentioned the accounts were in FCMB.  We hereby withdraw it with sincere apologies…” He said.