CLO accused the APC chieftains of masterminding unconstitutional attempts at regime change in the Senate, and lamented “erosion of democratic freedoms”
Chukwudi Nweje
Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) has petitioned the British High Commission, embassies of the United States of America (USA), France, Canada and European Union (EU), requesting the missions to sanction those it described as anti-democratic elements bent on upturning Nigeria’s democracy.
The group also requested that the visas of the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole; Senate Leader, Ahmed Lawan, and senators Abu Ibrahim, George Akume, Abdullahi Adamu, Ali Ndume, Ovie Omo-Agege, Godswill Akpabio, Sunday Ogbuoji, Hope Uzodimma, Abdullahi Gumel, and other leaders of the party to those countries be revoked.
In a four-page letter entitled: “Urgent Need to Rescue Nigeria’s Democracy: A Call to Sanction anti-democratic elements,” and signed by its Executive Director, Ibuchukwu Ezike, CLO accused the APC chieftains of masterminding unconstitutional attempts at regime change in the Senate, and lamented what it termed “steady erosion of democratic freedoms, civil liberties, checks and balances, rule of law, and independence of the legislature and the judiciary.”
It said: “As non-partisans, we hold the legislature as the sanctuary of democracy. We believe democracy perishes once the executive arm commandeers the legislature, which is the people’s arm of government.
“We are horrified that whereas Section 50 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) explicitly provides that ‘There shall be a president and a deputy president of the Senate, who shall be elected by members of that House from among themselves’, there have been resolute attempts by the APC to impose executive stooges as the presiding officers of the National Assembly since 2015.
“The most recent and brazen were the raid on the Senate in session by armed hooligans, allegedly escorted into the chambers by Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, to steal the mace of the Senate; simultaneous siege to the official residences of the Senate president, his deputy; and a siege to the National Assembly by hooded security operatives in clear attempts at illegal regime change of the Senate leadership.
“Although, the wishy-washy report of the police investigation refused to name the politicians that worked in concert with the Department of State Services (DSS) to forcefully takeover the National Assembly premises, the inciting public vituperations of the APC national chairman and some serving senators and leaders leave no one in doubt that they are behind the heinous attempts to ruin the nation’s democracy.
“CLO is unable to figure out any justification, be it on grounds of law, convention, and morality, for the continuous overheating of the polity by APC leaders over the leadership of the Senate.”
