By Nseobong Okon-Ekong
The Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) has described the Department of State Security (DSS) as a notorious agency that enjoys treating judicial process with disdain, particularly as it pertains to obeying orders of courts enforcing the fundamental rights of Nigerians.
The NBA position which was made known in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kunle Edun, referred to the “Unfortunate and flagrant disobedience of the order of Hon. Mr. Justice Taiwo Taiwo of the Federal High Court sitting at Abuja directing the release on bail of Omoyele Sowore by the Department of State Security Service of Nigeria on the 24th of September, 2019, of which the bail terms have long been perfected by the detainee’s counsel.”
Sowore, Convener of #RevolutionNow Protest, was picked up in a Lagos hotel by men of the security services on Saturday, August 3, in an attempt to scuttle the protest planned to hold on Monday, August 5. The activist and publisher of SaharaReporters, an online news portal had boldly called Nigerians to join him and his group to push out the President Muhammadu Buhari administration over alleged corruption and ineptitude.
However, the NBA contended that since the DSS found it convenient to approach the Federal High Court in ensuring the detention of Omoyele Sowore for more than 50 days, it was not acceptable that the agency has since comfortably refused to comply with the order of the same court directing the release of Sowore. The body of Nigerian legal practitioners said, “This is unacceptable in a country where there are laws and a nation whose Head of State professed at the recently concluded United Nations General Assembly to respect the human rights of citizens.”
The NBA statement condemned the continued detention of Sowere by the Department of State Security, “as same amounts to violation of his constitutional rights to personal liberty and that no one person shall be deprived of his liberty without a valid court order, as provided for in Section 35 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
The continued detention of Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd) in spite of various court orders readily comes to mind.
Expressing its disapproval of the continued detention of Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd), former National Security Adviser in spite of various court orders, the NBA called for the immediate release of Sowore and other Nigerians languishing in DSS detention centres without any charge.
