Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, whose name was among the ministerial nominees released Tuesday, denied a report published in The Punch that he was arrested in 2011 for alleged electoral fraud by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, whose name was among the ministerial nominees released Tuesday, denied a report published in The Punch that he was arrested in 2011 for alleged electoral fraud by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Mr. Lokpobiri, who served as a Senator from Bayelsa West Senatorial District from 2007 to 2015, also dismissed the report's allegation that he was impeached by the Bayelsa State House Assembly in 2001.
He described his “impeachment” as a charade fabricated by the report, and that the case was declared null and void by the courts.
In a statement personally signed by him, Mr. Lokpobiri lamented the “warping” of public knowledge to score “imaginary political points”.
''At first, my reaction to the report, contained in the Wednesday Edition of The Punch, page 21, was to ignore it as in my view it is preposterous, warped and lacking in credibility. However, in the interest of clarity I have decided to reveal the report as nothing more than the product of ill-motivated spinners whose intentions are known to them alone.
I am particularly amazed by the pedestrian report which insinuated that I was arrested in 2011 for an alleged electoral fraud, and also claimed that in 2001 a lawful impeachment of myself as Speaker of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly took place.
'In the interest of clarity, the charade referred to as my 2001 impeachment by the promoters of the report, which was carried out illegally by 10 out of a 24 member legislature, has since been declared null, void and illegal by a competent court of jurisdiction via Suit No YHC /88/2006 (Heineken Lokpobiri vs Bayelsa State House of Assembly) .
It is also laughable that the report struggled vainly to paint a picture of electoral fraud and tried to link me with such. This is curious and highly despicable. I was never arrested as insinuated. My nomination as minister by President Muhammadu Buhari is a testament to my two-terms as a Senator representing my people of Bayelsa West. Clearly there is still a need for me to contribute more to our national development.”