The leading pro-democracy and civil Rights advocacy body
– HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has urged President
Muhammadu Buhari to terminate the continuous abuse of power manifested in the
persecution of the publisher of the Saharareporters.com and a political
activist Mr. Omoyele Sowere.
HURIWA said it has been inundated with messages from all
over the World by persons expressing the unanimous view that the charges framed
against Mr. SOWORE is a disgrace to the corporate image of Nigeria and has made
Nigeria appear like a huge joke to the rest of the civilized World just as most
people have said that the persecution of SOWORE and others depicts Nigeria like
the General Idi Amin of Uganda or even the tyranny of Yoweiri Museveini.
The Rights group stated that the frivolous charges
slammed on the activist including the infantile charge of insulting the
president is a direct affront to the fundamental legal principle in which
constitutional democracy is anchored which includes the Right to freedom of
speech and the absolute Right to freedom from torture of any kind which Mr.
Sowere has faced for over two months. The Rights group said there is a general
accord on the sensitivity and centrality of freedom of speech in a
constitutional democracy in all schools of thoughts. Freedom of speech is an
important part of democracy because it protects minorities’ rights to speak in
politics participation. Freedom of speech puts restrictions on tyranny of the
majority who are required to sacrifice their own time in order to permit
minority opposition to express their views and ideas. Also the Rights group
pointed to section 14 (2) (c) of the constitution which clearly provides that
the participation by the people in their government SHALL be ensured in
accordance with the provisions o this c constitution. The Rights group said the
call for CIVIL Action by Omoyele SOWORE for which he was picked up was constitutionally
guaranteed.
The Rights group which stated that those spurious
charges instituted by the office of the Federal Attorney General and minister
of Justice in partnership with the Department of States Services under a
democratic administration is a direct throwback to the sad and sordid days of
misfortune and disaster called military dictatorship just as the group said the
illegal and arbitrary arrest of the activist and his other followers amounted
to an abuse of power which offends the constitution in section 15(5) which
states that Nigerian state shall abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of
power.
“Does Mr. President not know that the atrocious act of
locking up political opponents, civil rights activists and journalists in the
21st century has gradually exposed Nigeria to the danger of being regarded as a
rogue administration?”
HURIWA said: "We find it unbelievable that the
Federal Government on Friday last week filed seven counts of treasonable felony
and money laundering against the Convener of #RevolutionNow protest, Mr Omoyele
Sowore when it is a notorious fact that these are simply spurious and
unsustainable charges which cannot stand any standard judicial test in a
properly constituted independent court system which the Nigerian constitution
in section 6 envisages. Recall that Sowore, publisher of Sahara Reporters and a
presidential candidate in the February 2019 presidential election, is charged
along with Olawale Bakare, also known as Mandate. The charges were signed on
behalf of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice,
Abubakar Malami (SAN), by Aminu Alilu, a Chief State Counsel in the Department
of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, the Federal Ministry of
Justice."
On the charges which were filed a day before the
expiration of the detention order of the Federal High Court in Abuja permitting
the Department of State Service to keep the activist for 45 days, HURIWA says
the continuous detention of these Nigerians and many others remain unlawful and
unconstitutional and the Federal government is under a legal and moral
obligations to end this persecution now. "
"For the Federal government to stylishly rush to
The court to institute frivolous charges when the detention order elapses on
September 21 shows that the government completely lacks any rational reason for
this continuous persecution. In the charges instituted against the defendants,
the prosecution accused Sowore and his co-defendant of committing conspiracy to
commit treasonable felony in breach of section 516 of the Criminal Code Act by
allegedly staging “a revolution campaign on September 5, 2019 aimed at removing
the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria. The entire World views these cocktails of draconian
charges as an attempt to return Nigeria to the dark days of dictatorship".
The Rights group faulted the prosecution who also
accused the activists of committing the actual offence of reasonable
felony in breach of section, 4(1)(c) of the Criminal Code Act, by using the
platform of Coalition for Revolution, in August 2019 in Abuja, Lagos and other
parts of Nigeria, to stage the #RevolutionNow protest allegedly aimed at
removing the President because in the opinion of HURIWA these citizens calling
for CIVIL protests are allowed by the Nigerian Constitution to enjoy the
fundamental right to freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of
association".
HURIWA also condemned the alleged use of torture against
Omoyele SOWORE by the DSS as alleged by the defendant who stated that the DSS
threw him on a cold floor and locked the door at the detention facility of the
DSS.
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