Drama as Akpabio drags DSS over alleged anti-north statement
Drama as Akpabio drags DSS over alleged anti-north statement
President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, has petitioned the Department of State Services (DSS) over the circulation of a purported anti-North statement attributed to him on Facebook and other digital platforms.
The development was disclosed in a statement on Wednesday by his Special Assistant on Media, Mr Jackson Udom, who confirmed that the petition was formally submitted to the security agency.
In the petition dated September 9, 2026, and signed by his Chief of Staff, Mr Chinedu Akubueze, Akpabio called on the DSS to “urgently” investigate what he described as “the creation and coordinated dissemination on Facebook and other digital platforms of a manifestly false, inflammatory and dangerously divisive statement” attributed to him.
The controversial statement circulating online reads: “Northerners, You Will Be The Ones To Suffer The Most, If You Allow Tinubu To Lose The Election.”
However, the Senate President denied ever making such remarks, insisting that there was no verifiable record to support the claim.
“No date, venue, speech, interview, video, audio recordings, official statement or credible news report has been produced to authenticate it,” the petition stated.
According to the petition, the graphic being circulated lacks any identifiable publisher or verifiable source, raising concerns about deliberate misinformation.
It further alleged that the material “appears to have been deliberately manufactured and presented as an authentic quotation for the purpose of deceiving the public, provoking regional resentment against the President of the Senate and portraying him as threatening the people of Northern Nigeria.”
The petition revealed that preliminary checks on publicly accessible Facebook records identified some of the earliest individuals who allegedly circulated the graphic.
Among those mentioned are Abdullai Musa, said to have posted the graphic in a Facebook group known as Sheik Muhammad bin Uthman Group 24, and Uzoma Chilaka, whose post reportedly reproduced the material alongside commentary attributed to Boniface Uzoma Chilaka and Engineer Ibrahim Umar Ammar.
It also identified a verified Facebook account belonging to Ibrahim Umar Ammar, which allegedly reposted the graphic with similar commentary.
Despite naming the individuals, Akpabio cautioned against presuming guilt before the conclusion of investigations.
“The petition noted that these persons ‘should not be presumed guilty before investigation,’” the statement said.
It described them as “material persons of interest” who may provide useful information regarding the origin and spread of the content.
“They may possess information capable of identifying the graphics designer, original uploader, sponsors, intermediaries and the network through which it was distributed,” the petition added.
The Senate President urged the DSS to investigate the publication records, digital devices, communications, and the origin of the image in line with the law.
He stressed that the alleged publication was serious due to its potential to incite regional tension and misrepresent his position.
The petition therefore called on the DSS to establish the origin of the graphic, identify those responsible for its creation and dissemination, and determine whether an organised network was behind its spread.
