The
leading civil Rights Advocacy group – HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF
NIGERIA (HURIWA) has condemned the undue manifestation of arbitrariness by the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the matter involving the
former senator representing Kaduna Central Senator SHEHU SANI and the Kaduna
businessman Alhaji Sani Dauda.
In a
media statement by the National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and the
National Media Affairs Director Miss Zainab Yusuf, HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS
ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) accused the EFCC of discrimination in the
treatment of Senator Shehu Sani apparently because of his status as a
well-known critic of President Muhammadu Buhari which may have informed his
continued arbitrary detention.
“Why
is the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) refusing to grant bail
to this well-known civil Rights activist and politician Senator Shehu Sani? Why
is his own matter different when there are a plethora of instances of
politicians of all political persuasions who have been invited by the
anti-graft body, interrogated and released on bail. Even the disgraced erstwhilst
secretary to the government of the federation Mr. Babachir Lawal allegedly
implicated in the multi-million contract scam related to the fund of the
internally displaced persons of the North East of Nigeria, never spent up to
six hours with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. But Senator Shehu
Sani who has maintained his innocence of the accusations leveled against him by
one person, is still being kept in detention without the anti-graft body either
filing charges or releasing him on bail.”
Besides,
the Rights group believes that the arrest and detention of Senator Shehu Sani
known for his persistent but constructive criticism of the failings of the
current All Progressives Congress – led Federal government is progressively
revealing to be without reasonable cause and the trends are increasingly
manifesting that he may after all be a political hostage or prisoner of
conscience which contravenes all known municipal and international human rights
laws. May we by this medium inform President Muhammadu Buhari that all human
beings including his critics such as Senator Shehu Sani have the right to
liberty and security. It is imperative that Senator Shehu Sani is released
immediately from the arbitrary arrest and detention because irrespective of
their treaty obligations, all states are
bound by international law to respect and ensure everybody’s right to liberty
and security of the person and this is obviously a universal legal
responsibility which the Nigerian state must uphold at all times. Article 9(1)
of the international covenant on civil and political Rights provides that:
“Everyone has the right to liberty and security of person. No one shall be
subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention. No one shall be deprived of his
liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedure as are
established by law.” The continuous detention of Senator Shehu Sani without any
kind of reasonable cause is unconstitutional and illegal. The discriminatory
denial of even administrative bail to him is a violation of section 42(1) of
the Nigerian constitution. Section 42(1) states as follows: “A citizen of
Nigeria of a particular community, ethnic group, place of origin, sex, religion
or political opinion shall not, by reason only that he is such a person:- (a)
be subjected either expressly by, or in the practical application of, any law
in force in Nigeria or any executive or administrative action of the
government, to disabilities or restrictions to which citizens of Nigeria of
other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin, sex, religions or political
opinions are not made subject; or (b) be accorded either expressly by, or in
the practical application of, any law in force in Nigeria or any such executive
or administrative action, any privilege or advantage that is not accorded to
citizens of Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin, sex,
religions or political opinions.”
HURIWA
recalled that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission around December
ending last year confirmed the arrest of the former senator representing Kaduna
Central, Shehu Sani and that he is now being quizzed in our Jabi headquarters
in Abuja.
HURIWA
quoting information released to the media by the EFCC According Senator SHEHU
SANI allegedly collected money from the
chairman and CEO of ASD Motors, his namesake Sani Dauda, under the pretense of
passing it as bribe to EFCC boss, Ibrahim Magu.
Sani
Dauda was a former chairman of Peugeot Automobile Nigeria Limited (PAN). His
ASD Motors is a major car dealer in Abuja.
However,
HURIWA disclosed that from a written statement sent to it by the detained
Senator through his office, he has categorically denied all the allegations and
accused the EFCC of attempting to rope him into a phantom charge of
criminality. HURIWA affirmed thus:
Senator SHEHU SANI has just denied all the allegations as follows:
• The
allegations of “extortion” against me are baseless, fact less, unfounded,
hollow and unsubstantial.
• It is a scripted stream of mischievous
concoctions and utter fabrications using a puppet state agent; all aimed at splashing
feaces and mud on me.
• The extortion allegation is nothing but
a wholesale falsehood, packaged in a phantom anti-graft facade to taint, stain
and mute me. That shall never happen if I am alive.
• I have made my statement and provided
all my facts against their package of lies and I demand the EFCC to make public
all the sheets of our statements and supporting documents for the world to see.
• My detention is unfair, unjust, prearranged
and politically motivated.
• Alhaji Sani Dauda and his hidden
sponsors have not been able to provide any proof of their allegations. I’m
unjustly incarcerated on the ground of an arranged two page petition backed
with no evidential or documentary proof.
• Fascism thrives in frame up of its
critics.
• They claim extortion and here they are
closing my bank accounts, searching my houses and offices and demanding I
declare my assets of which I have already done that at the CCB last year when I
left the senate.
• Frame up cannot silence me!!!
• I have never ever met with the CJN or
any judge or judges or ever called directly or indirectly to offer to give or
to give directly or indirectly any form of gratification from Alhaji Sani
Dauda.
• I have never ever discussed with ASD on
any form of bribe or gratification to be given to any judge or any EFCC
official.
• The bribe story is phantom, the bribe
story is a fake, imaginative work of fiction, cruelly crafted to smear me, to
frame me and to justify my persecution.
• The bribe story is a heap of blatant
lies and outright falsehood concocted and fabricated, using a front and the
EFCC to premiere a state drama.
• ASD is a barely educated front for a
state mission.
• Criminalizing me or “framing me” will
not silence me, bend me or compromise me.
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