Channels Interview: DHQ denies declaring Olawunmi wanted

Olawunmi, who spoke on Sunrise Daily, a Channels Television programme, last Wednesday, had alleged that some governors, Senators and officials of Aso Rock had been behind the Boko Haram insurgency.

The retired military intelligence chief, who is currently a professor of Criminology and Global Security Studies and Head of the Department of Criminology and Security Studies at Chrisland University, Abeokuta, Ogun State, had alleged that some insurgents arrested had during interrogation mentioned some serving governors, senators and highly placed politicians in government as their sponsors.

Olawunmi had said: “You remember this Boko Haram issue started in 2012 and I was in the military intelligence at that time. We arrested those people. My organisation actually conducted interrogation and they (suspects) mentioned names.

“I can’t come on air and start mentioning names of people that are presently in government that I know that the boys that we arrested mentioned. Some of them are governors now, some of them are in the Senate, some of them are in Aso Rock.”

Unconfirmed reports went viral on Saturday that the former military intelligence chief had been declared wanted by the Defence Intelligence Agency.

But the Director of Defence Information, General Benjamin Sawyerr, said such reports were untrue.

Sawyer reportedly said: “There is nothing like that. There is no time that the DIA ordered the arrest of the naval officer. He went on Channels Television and said a lot of things. So, someone in intelligence called him and asked him to come on Tuesday and share his information.

“The military does not issue warrant of arrest. Only a court can order an arrest. The former officer spent a lot of time at the interview. If they wanted to arrest him, they would have done so. No one invites someone just to arrest them.”

Reports about the DIA declaring Olawunmi’s wanted comes two days after the National Broadcasting Commission issued queried Channels Television over a recent interview with Venue State Governor Samuel Ortom, about Federal Government’s decision to review grazing reserves.

NBC in the query issued to the television station stated that Ortom made “inciting, divisive and unfair comments which were not thoroughly interrogated by the anchors”.