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From TONY JOHN, Port Harcourt
The Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) has retracted its earlier position that Joshua MacIver, the Deputy Governorship Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa State, in the forthcoming election, was not registered as one of the beneficiaries of the amnesty and unconditional pardon granted Niger Delta ex-agitators by the Federal Government.
The Interim Administrator, PAP, Maj.-Gen. Barry Ndiomu (retd), in the new letter addressed to the Secretary to Government of the Federation (SGF) and dated August 24, 2023, received by Daily Sun in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, tendered an unreserved apology for his earlier July 7 correspondence where he claimed that the name, Joshua MacIver, could not be found in the register of amnesty beneficiaries.
Ndiomu said the Technical and Data Unit of PAP upon receiving the July inquiry from the SGF’s office urgently sent the reply that misrepresented Maclver’s presidential pardon as it failed to thoroughly scrutinize the register.
He said after thorough investigation and diligent scrutiny, PAP discovered that MacIver, who is a running mate to the APC Governorship Candidate, Timipre Sylva, was among ex-agitators that received presidential pardon from the late President Musa Yar’Adua.
The letter said in parts: “I am writing in response to your letter with Reference: SGF.19/S/105/178 dated 7th July, 2023, as well as this organization’s reply under Reference OIA/PAP/IAO/VOL V/417 dated 7th July, 2023, concerning Mr.Joshua MacIver’s status as a beneficiary of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP).
“I would like to mention that due to the urgency of the confirmation, our Technical and Data Unit provided information hastily, as indicated by the dates of both the received letter and our response.
“Upon thorough investigation, we have identified an oversight in our records regarding Mr.Joshua MacIver’s PAP beneficiary status. It has now been established that Mr. MacIver received an unconditional pardon from the Late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.
“We deeply regret any confusion or inconvenience caused by this oversight. Rest assured, we have taken corrective measures to rectify our records and prevent future discrepancies.
“We apologise for any misunderstandings and any inconvenience this misrepresentation may have caused. We remain steadfast and committed in maintaining accurate records for all PAP beneficiaries. Please, accept as always, my highest assurances and esteemed regards.”
It was gathered that the clarification shocked the camp of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its Governorship Candidate, Governor Douye Diri, who had depended on the initial letter to institute a disqualification suit against the Sylva/MacIver ticket of the APC.
It was gathered that, in a reaction MacIver, said he knew that there was a case of oversight because he was among the group of five prominent agitators known as the G5, who led their foot soldiers to accept the amnesty offered by the federal government in the sole interest of peace in the region.
He thanked Ndiomu for owning up to the mistake of PAP and correcting it on time and advised the APC family to remain resolute and rest assured that their Sylva/MacIver ticket is intact and ready to win the election.
MacIver further challenged Governor Douye Diri to get set for the poll by first facing his principal, Timipre Sylva, in a public debate.
