(Onitsha Nigeria, 11th of May 2016)- The arrest, yesterday,
10th of May 2016 of Barr Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa is inexcusably
political and ill-conceived. Barr Adegboruwa was arrested by the operatives of
the EFCC and is being detained and may be arraigned in court tomorrow, 12th
of May 2016. Mr. Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa belongs to the Lagos School of Democracy
& Human Rights Activism and is one of the few credible critics of the
administration of Gen Muhammadu Buhari from the Lagos section of Nigerian Civil
Society Community; which has been accused in many social quarters of
conspiratorially going dead since the emergence of Gen Muhammadu Buhari as
President of Nigeria.
From the latest detailed public
response of the Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa’s Law Firm over EFCC’s accusation leveled
against him; “obtaining money by false pretence”, it is obvious that the
activist lawyer is being persecuted for standing firmly against killer-policies
of the Buhari’s Presidency. We also agreed with the activist lawyer’s law firm
that “he is further being persecuted because of his law firm’s professional
briefs from the duo of Mr. Government Ekpemupolo (a.k.a. Tompolo) and Mr.
Azibaola Robert; a relative of former President Goodluck Jonathan. Under the
1999 Constitution and its subsidiary laws, Mr. Government Ekpemupolo and Mr.
Asibaola Robert have constitutional and legal rights to be represented by
lawyers of their own, no matter the gravity of criminal allegations so leveled.
To dust up a legally dead matter
with court-sanctioned arbitrated settlement, and convert it to criminal
allegation of “obtaining money by false pretence” so as to cow and intimidate
Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa is roundly condemned. In the name of “fighting corruption”,
the Buhari administration has injured the souls of many innocent citizens by
using machinery of the State to fight political war or vendetta, in the false
name of “fighting corruption”. In the Buhari administration’s so called “fight
against corruption”, all corrupt politicians in its camp including those that
sponsored the APC presidential campaigns, those that reportedly shared dollar
bribes to delegates at the APC presidential primaries and those that provided
private jets and helicopters used by Gen Buhari and top members of his Party, are
spared and shielded till date; while any known political opponent or critic of
the present administration is hounded and labeled “corrupt”. We have severally
stated that “a cabalistic cartel, composed of doyens of corruption” can never
fight corruption because corruption begets corruption.
We hereby call for immediate
release of Barr Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa and cessation of indiscriminate arrest and
detention of Nigerians of social criticism. As a member of the United Nations,
Nigeria under Gen Muhammadu Buhari must refrain from breaching the United Nations
Declaration on the Rights of Human Rights Defenders. Human Rights Defenders,
Pro Democracy Campaigners and Media Activists are the souls of their countries
and formidable change agents that must be protected by the State at all times;
not the other way round.
Signed:
Emeka Umeagbalasi, Board Chairman (+2348174090052)
International Society for Civil Liberties & the Rule of Law
0 comments so far,add yours