Former Aviation Minister and Director of New media of the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council (APC-PCC), Femi Fani-Kayode, has apologised for raising an alarm about an impending coup plot in the country, saying he regrets making the allegations.
Fani-Kayode had, on Saturday in a series of tweets, alleged that the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, was holding meetings with some high-ranking military officers with a view to carry out a coup.
Fani-Kayode who tendered the apology while speaking to journalists in Abuja on Monday after he was grilled for over five hours and released by the Department of State Services (DSS), said he should have been mindful of his comments as a public figure who is looked up to by many.
The APC chieftain however, said he raised the coup alarm to “draw the attention of security agencies to be on top of the situation if there was any iota of truth on the matter.”
He also disclosed that the security agency asked him to report back on Wednesday and once every other week until they conclude their investigation.
“I think it’s left to them until they now decide whether they feel the need to take a much more approach to charge me to court, or when they feel that I’ve done nothing wrong,” he said.
“But during the course of the discussion, I think it’s fair for me to mention one or two things. I think it’s very self-evident that some of the things that said were regrettable.
“Why do I say so? When news comes out, like somebody’s meeting with Army officers, perhaps one should not have simply believe and accept it even if it is true.
“Perhaps another course could have been taken by saying ‘let me ask the authorities privately. Let me try to find out before I say anything at all.’
“I think I would concede that sometimes we have to be more circumspect, especially given the fact that they pointed out that the medium was actually faceless. So we can’t rely on such things.
“Of course, when I say something on my Twitter handle, it is like the whole world is listening.
“And apparently, what I said really sent shockwaves in a number of places and some people were very hurt by that. I think it’s regrettable that that was the course that was taken. I’m always the first to admit when things are not going in the right way.
“But the most important thing, as I pointed out to them, was that my intention was very clear. The intention was to ensure that the authorities were on top of the situation, and perhaps without investigating Atiku to know if it is true or not. And they responded the following day,” Fani-Kayode said.
