The governorship candidate of the Labour Party (LP) for Enugu State in the 2023 elections, Chijioke Edeoga, has condemned the arrest of the National Chairman of the party, Julius Abure, saying the action of the police was an abuse of his fundamental rights, and could be interpreted to suggest attempts to diminish the fortunes of the party in the forthcoming governorship contest in Edo State.
Edeoga, in a statement, condemned the public humiliation Abure was subjected to during the arrest, and demanded greater respect for the man, whom he said leads millions of LP members in the country.
He lamented that the Edo State Police Command, in enforcing the arrest, treated the LP leader like a criminal, wondering why no invitation was extended to him before he was subjected to such public humiliation.
“Without prejudice to the police procedure and investigations, these allegations smack of deliberate attempt to intimidate and diminish the person and office of the Labour Party Chairman before every right-thinking Nigerian.
From every indication, and based on available facts and information, Abure, a highly placed, law-abiding Nigerian and leader of millions of LP members spread all over Nigeria, was not issued any formal invitation by the Nigerian Police before the humiliating and dehumanising arrest. I note with profound displeasure, the attempt to treat the leader of the LP with such disdain by arresting and treating him like a common criminal. It has to be noted that Abure, like other party leaders participating in the upcoming governorship election in Edo State, had been in the state to prepare grounds for the primary elections to select the party’s governorship candidate for the elections,” Edeoga said in the statement.
He also condemned the alleged description of Abure as a factional chairman of the LP by the Edo State Police Command, and a section of the media, stating that by a judgement of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, Abure had been affirmed as the undisputed National Chairman of the party.
“Nigerians should note the deliberate attempt to describe Julius Abure as a “factional Chairman” of the LP by the Edo State Police Command. This is far from the truth, and the Nigerian Police for which the Edo State Police Command is a part of, is fully aware of the Supreme Court’s judgement, which confirmed him as the National Chairman of our great party. The reference to Abure as a factional chairman is, therefore, intentional, and must have been deployed to further undermine his office, his person, and the political party he leads. It is also condemnable that many journalists have been misled into describing Abure as a factional chairman, apparently taking cues from the misidentification of his person and office by the Edo State Police Command,” the statement said.
Edge said the action of the police might be a sign of bias against the LP by some state institutions ahead of the election, and urged the security agencies to provide a level playing ground for all participants in the interest of peace, justice and fairness.
“As a unit of the Nigerian Government responsible for the prevention and detection of crime and the maintenance of public order, the Nigerian Police should be reminded to treat citizens with dignity, see every person as equal before the law, and accord respect to the leaders of the people, irrespective of whether they are in the ruling party or the opposition,” he advised.
The Enugu State LP leader also called on President Bola Tinubu to caution the Nigerian Police and other security agencies against actions capable of projecting them as biased, stating that it was their responsibility to provide security for all Nigerian citizens, and to ensure everyone is treated equally, irrespective of party affiliation.
“President Tinubu should lead the way in dispelling the conqueror mindset in many political leaders by opening and encouraging the formation of all-inclusive governments, as a demonstration of the sportsmanship that should be in political contests, because in the end, the purpose of partisan politics is to work for the betterment of the people, and guarantee their wellbeing, freedom and liberty,” he concluded. (Sun)