- Warns FG, security operatives, demand security beef up around Obi, Datti, others
From Jeff Amechi Agbodo, Onitsha
The International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) has warned the outgoing Federal Government of Nigeria and the country’s security agencies that nothing untoward must happen to the presumed winners of the 2023 presidential poll, Mr Peter Obi, and his Deputy, Mr Datti Ahmed, and the poll’s runner-up, Mr Atiku Abubakar, and other democracy defenders or activists.
The group warned Nigerian security agencies and their commanders to refrain from being used by the outgoing Buhari/Osinbajo Government of Nigeria to falsely or criminally label and molest defenceless Nigerians including the named political actors and democracy activists.
The Chairman of Intersociety Mr Emeka Umeagbalasi in a statement urged the government to refocus their attention on their stewardship and public accountability over their deeds and misdeeds in the past eight years.
“Nigerians had expected the Nigerian Minister of Information to be busy with coordination of the inter-ministerial, parastatals and departments’ handover accountability especially since 29th May 2023 is much around the corner.
“Therefore, Peter Obi, Datti Ahmed and Atiku Abubakar must be protected at all times by the security operatives to enable them to attend to and conclude their cases before the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT). Nigeria must avoid going up in unquenchable flames.
“By security agencies’ harassments’, they include harassments and arrests by security agencies via false security alarms, criminal labelling, ethnic and religious profiling and concoction of trumped up charges or accusations bordering on high treasons or “crimes against the State” (.i.e. treason and treasonable felonies such as insurrection and terrorism) with intents to clamp into detention without trial using ‘prosecutorial or pre-prosecutorial vindictiveness’.
“By jihadists’ assassination or plots’, they include resorting to ‘perfect killings’ or assassination plots using Islamic jihadists. Their sole target victim (Peter Obi) may be targeted for assassination (perfect killing) using car bombing, helicopter/air crash and toxic substances; or open assassination through movement ambush, gunfire and other open assassination methods.
“This is the second time Intersociety is raising this security threat alarm, having first raised it about eleven months ago in 2022. ‘By cybercriminals’ attacks’, include tapping telephone conversations and attacking websites of leading and consistent democracy activists and institutions.
“Cybercriminals’ attacks may also include lethal attacks on Peter Obi, Datti Ahmed, Atiku Abubakar and consistent democracy activists using harmful chemical or biological substances as well as directing deadly cyber virus attacks on their websites, phones, computers and other communications equipment or gadge,” Umeagbalasi stated.