The All Progressives Congress (APC) has challenged the Department of State Service (DSS) to immediately tell Nigerians the outcome of its investigations into the allegation of PVC cloning that forced the security agency to invade the party’s offices in Lagos over a week ago.
In a statement issued in Abuja on Monday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said if no evidence of PVC cloning was found, the DSS should apologise to Nigerians for acting on the basis of faulty intelligence.
It said any further delay in telling Nigerians the outcome of the investigations, after almost 10 days, could mean that the DSS is trying to manufacture evidence to support its faulty intelligence.
“Without carrying out any investigation and with no shred of evidence, the DSS gleefully announced to the world that they stormed our data centre because they got information that Permanent Voters Cards were being cloned there.
“On the basis of this uncorroborated announcement, the PDP categorically accused the APC of cloning PVCs. It is now over a week since the DSS carted away materials and computer servers after ransacking our offices for over two hours. The agency’s experts must have analysed the information in the materials and on the servers.
“Therefore, we are now asking them to immediately announce their findings to the world. After all, it took them only a few hours after their Gestapo-like invasion of our offices before they issued their baseless allegation of PVC cloning to justify their action,” APC said.
The party said while it has gone to court to seek redress, the DSS still owes Nigerians an explanation and, if indeed no evidence of card cloning was found, an unreserved apology.
It advised the DSS to always endeavour to act professionally and fairly in carrying out its duties, rather than taking beer parlour gossips as useful intelligence, adding: “It is this type of faulty intelligence that has been stifling the efforts to deconstruct Boko Haram and facilitate the battle to end the insurgency that is daily killing and maiming innocent Nigerians.”
