Arrest ‘corrupt’ Yahaya Bello, leave peaceful protesters alone — Deji Adeyanju tells ‘timid’ Tinubu regime
Human rights lawyer and activist, Deji Adeyanju, has said that President Bola Tinubu’s government and its security agencies are afraid of the former Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello.
Adeyanju said Tinubu’s government is scared to arrest Bello over his alleged over alleged laundering of N80.2 billion despite the court order for his arrest.
According to the lawyer, Tinubu’s administration chooses to flex its muscles against peaceful protesters who are protesting against acute hunger, hardship and bad governance in Nigeria.
“Go and arrest Yahaya Bello. Why are you scared of Yahaya Bello? After all, Yahaya Bello is disregarding and disrespecting the court,” Adeyanju said in a recent interview with multiple media platforms.
“The court has ordered his arrest but the government is afraid to arrest Yahaya Bello, but the government is angry with protesters. What kind of a country is this?”
“Citizens must rise and protest. Protest is a constitutional right. Don’t be scared. All these things are that they are trying to make people scared so that people will not come and protest.”
Recall that a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Wednesday granted bail to 10 protesters arrested in Abuja, Kaduna, Kano, and Gombe, for their involvement in the #EndBadGovernance protests.
Each defendant is required to provide a surety with landed property in Abuja and pay N10 million bail.
The protesters were Comrades Eleojo Opaluwa, Michael Tobiloba Adaramoye, aka Michael Lenin, Angel Innocent, Mosiu Sodiq, Adeyemi Abayomi, along with five others arrested for simply waving flags in Kano (Suleiman Yakubu, Buhari Lawal, Bashir Bello [Murtala], Nuradeen Khamis, Abdulsalam Zubairu), who were arrested in August and have been detained for over a month.
Justice Emeka Nwite while ruling on the bail applications filed by their respective lawyers on Wednesday held that the offence for which the defendants are standing trial is bailable and they are entitled to bail.
He ordered that the surety must swear an affidavit of means and must reside within the jurisdiction of the court. The court said the surety must also deposit the title documents of their property.
The court also held that the defendants must submit three passport photographs and their passports and restricted them from participating in any public rally.
A Department of State Services (DSS) memo on which Sahara Reporters recently reported contained an order for the arrest of human rights activist and convener of #RevolutionNow Movement, Omoyele Sowore, upon his arrival in Nigeria. Sowore is currently with his family in the United States.
Earlier in September, DSS instructed airport security and immigration authorities to intercept and detain Sowore upon his arrival in Nigeria.
It was learnt that the directive, issued by the newly appointed DSS Director General, Adeola Ajayi, stemmed from Sowore’s role in the recent 10-day #EndBadGovernance protests.
