National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh |
The Peoples Democratic Party
has demanded the release of its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa
Metuh, warning that his arrest was capable of ruining the country’s democracy.
The party said in a statement
by its National Secretary, Prof. Adewale Oladipo, that Metuh's
arrest by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Tuesday morning did
not come as a surprise “given series of threats” to him by the ruling All
Progressives Congress and the Federal Government.
The PDP spokesperson is
believed to be in connection with the ongoing $2.1bn arms probe. He is said to
be under investigation for allegedly collecting about N400m from the office of
the former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuke (retd).
The money is believed to be
part of the funds meant for the procurement of arms and ammunition for the
fight against Boko Haram in North-East.
The PDP, however, insisted
that the arrest was part of a crackdown on its members in a bid to silence the opposition
and “install a dictatorial one-party state”.
It said, “The arrest of Chief
Metuh today underscores the growing political intolerance in our country and
the foisting of a police state which was last Wednesday underscored by the
President and Commander-in-Chief himself, who defended why a government in a democracy
should flout constitutional provision and brazenly disobey court orders.”
The PDP also claimed that
there was a plot to harm Metuh while in custody. “We state this because we have
been made aware of top directives to break Chief Metuh and if possible poison
him during his detention by
the EFCC,” it said.
It added that the excesses of
security agencies under the APC-led Federal Government, especially the
Directorate of Security Services and the EFCC, in abridging the human rights of
PDP members had become worrisome and a threat to the country’s
democratic evolution.
The party called on the
international community and well-meaning Nigerians to stand up for democracy, which
it said it “nurtured for 16 years and deepened to a level where
the opposition, for the first time in our political history, had the
opportunity to win in a general election.
“We therefore forewarn the FG
and its agencies to save our democracy and forthwith release our National Publicity
Secretary,” it added.
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