The Pan Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, on Thursday, reacted to the court order granting the detention of Mr. Omoyele Sowore, the Presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), for 45 days.
The Federal High Court, sitting in Abuja, Thursday, granted the Department of State Services, DSS, an approval to keep Omoyele Sowore in detention for 45 days pending the outcome of its discrete investigations.
The presiding judge, Taiwo Taiwo also said DSS could get additional permission to detain Sowore in custody for his activism.
Afenifere in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Yinka Odumakin, Afenifere expressed worry over the court ruling granted to detain Sowore.
Odumakin said he was perturbed by the detention without trial order granted the DSS.
According to him, “The order represents a new phase in the orchestrated conscription of the democratic space in Nigeria.”
The statement read: “Sowore was arrested before he could commit an offence and the DSS seems to want to go shopping for evidence to prosecute him.
“We are aware of that obnoxious provision in the Terrorism Act, but it can never assume superiority over the Constitution which stipulates that a citizen cannot be detained for more than 48 hours before being charged to court.
“Having failed to allow him to commit the offense before he was peremptorily arrested, the DSS should free Sowore or charge him to court so that the judicial process can take its course.
“As it is, he is only being held illegally using the legal process.
“The government should understand and act in conformity with the democratic tenets in dealing with the rights of Nigerians.”
