- Senior lawyer, Femi Falana, says APC leaders continually cried out against violation of the fundamental rights of their members before the party came into power
- DSS arrests PDP senator, Enyinnaya Abaribe, in Abuja
Senior lawyer and human rights activist, Femi Falana (SAN), has accused the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led administration of committing the same infringement it accused previous regimes of committing.
Vanguard reports that Falana in a statement alleged that APC leaders had continually cried out against the violation of the fundamental rights of their members and other Nigerians before the party came into power.
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He stated that the human rights community did not hesitate to take up the complaints of the victims of such human rights abuse.
The statement by Falana read in part: “For instance, at the instance of the defunct All Nigerian People Party, ANPP, and other opposition political parties, our law firm challenged the constitutional validity of Police permit when the Nigeria Police Force violently disrupted the rally held by ANPP in Kano in May 2003 to protest the rigging of the 2003 general election.
“General Muhammadu Buhari and other ANPP chieftains were teargassed and dispersed on the grounds that they had assembled without obtaining a Police permit.”
“The Federal High Court granted the reliefs sought by the plaintiffs. “In upholding the fundamental rights of Nigerians to freedom of expression and assembly, the court declared that Police permits for rallies and meetings were illegal and unconstitutional.
“The appeal filed against the judgment by the Inspector-General of Police was dismissed by the Court of Appeal, which held that Police permit was a relic of colonialism, which cannot be justified under a democratic dispensation."
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Falana’s accusation is sequel to the arrest of the senator representing Abia south in the Senate, Eyinnaya Abaribe by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Abaribe, a former deputy governor of Abia state, has been a vocal critic of the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
According to his special adviser, Nwokoma Okorie, Senator Abaribe was picked up on Friday, June 22, at his barber’s shop in the Apo area of Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory. Supporters and associates of the senator have been on social media announcing his arrest.
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Source: Naija.ng