Reactions are still pouring in over some of the
comments made by President Muhammadu Buhari
during his recent presidential chat.
A couple of Nigerian activists and lawyers that spoke
to Premium Times condemned the president for
saying his government will continue to detain two
prominent detainees – former National Security
Adviser, Sambo Dasuki and the leader of the
separatist group, Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB)
– Nnamdi Kanu, despite several court orders that
they should be released from detention.
Mr Dasuki is facing corruption charges over alleged
diversion of $2.1 billion meant for the procurement of
arms while Mr. Kanu was charged for treasonable
felony.
On Dasuki’s trial, Buhari had said: “If you see the
atrocities these people committed against this country,
we
can’t allow them to jump bail. What of the over two
million people displaced, most of them orphans whose
fathers have been killed? We cannot allow that.”
On Kanu’s case Buhari said: “And the one you are
calling Kanu, do you know he has two passports – one
Nigerian, one British – and he came into this country
without any passport? Do you know he came into this
country with sophisticated equipment and was
broadcasting for Radio Biafra?”
A human rights lawyer, Ebun Adegboruwa, described
the comment as a “national embarrassment”, adding
that Buhari proved by his open defiance of the
judiciary that he remained a dictator at heart.
He said: “We appreciate the President because he has
spoken from his heart and gave us the correct
impression
of who he is.
“Under Section 287 of the 1999 constitution, all persons
exercising judicial, executive or legislative power must
have respect for the order of the court. It is not proper
for the president to choose which order to respect or to
obey. Given that the president assumed office through
the
rule of law, it is totally uncharitable to be humiliating the
judiciary openly in a presidential chat.
“The reason why this is very difficult is that once we
resort to self-rule, once we resort to a situation where
the
leadership is breathing down lawlessness, then anarchy
will come because if a president will not obey a court
order, a business man will not obey it, policemen will not
obey it.
“It would be promoting anarchy. I am sure in some
quarters the SSS people are rejoicing. Overzealous
security officials and rejoicing, and perhaps using the
President’s comment as reason to put people in custody
and breed impunity.”
On his part, Chairman of the Civil Society Network
Against Corruption (CSNAC), Lanre Suraju said the
President’s comment was “unfortunate”, adding that
his utterance was capable of undermining security
agencies in their jobs.
He said: “The utterance of the president yesterday
(Wednesday) only shows that there is a government
agenda specifically and deliberately skewed to
perpetually
keep the guy in detention. And that is most unfortunate.
That is also not only pitching the judiciary against the
executive, it is also showing that there would be a
measure of arbitrariness on the part of the executive.
“The case of Nnamdi Kanu is also unfortunate. It is an
extra-judicial action. Basically, if he is being charged for
treason, there is also certain condition that needs to be
met before bail can be granted. If the lawyers of the
government have failed to establish the magnitude of
his
offence, and the court in its own wisdom has granted
that
bail, the SSS has no basis and no reason under the rule
of law to perpetually keep him in detention

http://itzsongster..co.ke/2016/01/activists-laywers-blast-on-buhari-over.html?m=1

Interesting

Let him go and die in Oshio's Voice.

.