Keyamo tells the EU that they were asked to watch, not investigate, in the 2023 polls. Festus Keyamo, who used to be Minister of State for ...

 Keyamo tells the EU that they were asked to watch, not investigate, in the 2023 polls.

Festus Keyamo, who used to be Minister of State for Labour and Employment, has responded to the European Union's final report on the 2023 elections.

Festus Keyamo, who used to be Minister of State for Labour and Employment, has responded to the European Union's (EU) final report on the 2023 elections, in which he is accused of spreading fake news.

In its report, the EU said that both Keyamo and the former Aviation Minister, Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode, spread false information during the 2023 election campaigns. Both men were spokesmen for Bola Tinubu, who is now the President, who was the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the time.

In response to the report, Keyamo criticized the EU for getting involved in the investigation. He said that the EU was asked mainly to observe and report, and he brought up other reasons to criticize the EU.

In a statement titled "My Response to the 'Fake News' Assertion by the EU Report," released on Wednesday, the former minister said, "The part of the EU report that says I retweeted a news item from a "suspicious website" once during the whole campaign does not deserve my response because it is so presumptuous and outside their mandate. It also shows a deep-seated bias in how the so-called observers did their job."But I will say a few words to educate the foolhardy and unlucky people who are happy about such bad news.

Keyamo said, "Their first job is to WATCH AND REPORT. Their job doesn't include looking into claims made by candidates against each other and coming to a conclusion about them. They are neither journalists nor people who execute the law.

"They don't do anything. Calling any news "fake" when they don't have other facts or findings from institutions that are required by law to look into such claims is the same as taking a side in a campaign and trying to support one candidate against another. And that's very sad and upsetting for these people who are watching."

A senior lawyer named Keyamo also criticized the EU for being biased when it questioned the evidence of the probe. He also criticized the EU for having the nerve to call a news platform "a suspicious website."

He said, "Secondly, even professional journalists, courts, and law enforcement agencies MUST talk to all sides before coming to a decision about any allegation. Where is the proof that the EU monitors talked to the people who made these claims and tried to get more information before writing their sloppy report?

"Third, they said I shared a story from "a sketchy website." What makes a site "suspicious," anyway? They didn't say anything more. How can people from outside a country just say that a local news website is "suspicious" and then leave? What a braggart!"

The ex-minister went on, "Fourthly, and strangely, while other local and foreign journalists had said that ALL POLITICAL PARTIES tried to top each other by spreading false stories, the EU report only mentioned the APC. So,

were they not aware of what the other side was doing?

"For example, was there any mention of the many false reports made by the PDP and LP that our candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who is now President, had to be taken out of the country for urgent medical care, even though there wasn't a shred of proof to back up those claims? Isn't that 'fake news'?

"Overall, the EU study is just a one-sided story told from one point of view. I also want to thank the Opposition for working closely with the EU and winning the very important EU Final Report. For us, the REAL WINNER OF THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION 2023 will have to do as a consolation prize."