Okechukwu made the call while reacting to a statement in which the former minister purportedly, indicted the former president, describing the statement as a confession of guilt.
In a swift reaction however, a media aide of the former minister, Paul Nwabuikwu debunked the allegation that Iweala indicted Jonathan saying she did not indict the administration in served.
In the words of Okechukwu, “It is not just a statement, it is self-confession of Dr (Mrs) Ngozi Okonjo-IWEALA, immediate past Minister of Finance to the effect that she failed woefully to save Nigeria’s humongous Crude Oil Windfall under her watch, in an economy which ex-president, Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, innocently handed over to her to coordinate. Please it is self-confession.’
“Dr (Mrs) Ngozi Okonjo-IWEALA should be prosecuted for her conspiracy in squandering the humongous Crude Oil Windfall which accrued under her watch as Minister of Finance and the Coordinator of the economy.’
“My understanding is that ex-president Jonathan handed over the economy for our sister to manage because of her acclaimed international pedigree. A World Bank renowned economist and one who bided for World Bank President has no excuse; for her to remain in office while the profligacy was going on, in other words supervised the bazaar, and refused to resign in honour, she should be jailed,” he said.
On the claims that she was not the President and the buck didn’t stop at her desk, Mr Okechukwu said: “Give me a break. Ngozi could should have resigned, that’s the path of honour and rectitude. It is easy to sit in her comfort zone in the United States and plot an escape route from the economic adversity she unleashed on Nigerians. I’m not defending the ex-president, but let the truth be told. Jonathan is now the bad guy, while she is the saint. Did she cry out loud or resign”.
Okechukwu holding brief for Iweala in a statement made available to The AUTHORITY on Saturday said contrary to the slant of given by the media to Iweala comment she did not indict the former president.
“Rather, she was referring to what many Nigerians already know: the strong opposition by some governors to the Jonathan government’s efforts to save in the Excess Crude Account and the Sovereign Wealth Fund sabotaged this important national priority.
“The governors’ criticism of Dr Okonjo-Iweala’s many calls for the country to save for the rainy day are still fresh in the minds of Nigerians.
“It will be recalled that this opposition culminated in the Governors taking the Jonathan government to the Supreme Court in furtherance of their position that the Federal Government had no right to “compel” them to save.
“So the issue of Okonjo-Iweala indicting the Jonathan administration over this very public issue simply does not arise,” he said.
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