Why I support Buhari despite his government jailing me – Tunde Thompson

Mr. Tunde Thompson CREDITS: PREMIUMTIMES

Despite being imprisoned by the administration of then Head of State, Muhammadu Buhari, under the draconian Degree 4 of 1983, journalist Tunde Thompson has declared his support for the former’s presidential bid.

Mr. Thompson said he has forgiven the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and will firmly support him in the forthcoming presidential election.

The journalist was the Guardian newspaper diplomatic correspondent when he was arrested by the defunct secret police, the National Security Organisation, NSO, alongside a former member of the House of Representatives and current chairman of the League Management Company, Nduka Irabor, who was then an assistant editor at the Guardian. Mr. Thompson was sentenced to a year in prison, for writing about the closure and retirement of some diplomatic staff. He told the Sun newspaper that Mr. Buhari did not order his arrest.

He said time has healed any grudge he had against Mr. Buhari adding that he believed that Mr. Buhari arrested them because he was misled.

He admonished those using his ordeal as election capital against the presidential bid of Mr Buhari to learn to be “charitable” and allow bygone to be bygone since the event happened over 30 years ago.

Mr. Thompson said his support for Mr. Buhari is borne out of the belief that Nigeria needs a person of his character to truncate the wave of corruption, economic meltdown and impunity that has characterised President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.  ...PremiumTimes