25th October,
2018
PRESS RELEASE:
EFCC TO BLAME FOR
FAYOSE’S ROBIN HOOD MENTALITY
The
former governor of Ekiti State, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, who is currently facing
trial for graft cases, reportedly took stomach infrastructure to the Economic
and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) office by feeding over 150 people,
including detainees and visitors two days ago. The elated detainees allegedly
sang the national anthem after their stomachs had been filled. Fayose also
allegedly secured lawyers for some of the detainees and promised to assist
those who have challenges meeting their bail conditions.
However,
the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has described the incident as outrageous,
preposterous and embarrassing. This was contained in a press statement released
by the human rights organization on Thursday, 25th October, 2018.
The statement was signed by the director and founder of the Islamic group,
Professor Ishaq Akintola.
“It
is a comedy of errors. A man accused of stealing money belonging to the people
is allowed to rewind the famous Robin Hood tape under the watch of an
anti-graft agency. This calls the seriousness of some EFCC operatives to
question. How can they allow such a thing to happen? It is the shame of a
nation. We are miffed.
“EFCC
and other security agencies have no business detaining people they cannot feed
adequately. It is highly immoral to arrest and detain a man knowing fully well
that you do not have the capacity to cater for his basic needs, namely, food,
water and shelter. Should detainees be responsible for feeding themselves? This
is a national question that must be answered once and for all. Nigerians must
know their rights.
“Nay,
Nigerians must know their oppressors. How can we allow the same kleptomaniacs
who stole our common patrimony to come and feed us with their dirty blood money
in times of distress? It is mockery of the highest order and it robs us of our
dignity if we welcome them with open arms. They have come to laugh at us for
being foolish enough to think hardwork, honesty and patriotism alone can
provide our needs. It is dehumanising. This cannot happen in saner climes. Are
we serious as a people? We are nonplussed.
“Human
dignity is Allah-given according to Qur’an 17:70. It says, ‘We have granted
dignity to the children of Adam…’. Why should EFCC rob Nigerian citizens of
their Allah-given dignity by detaining them without adequate feeding thereby
exposing them to political charlatans, ideological demagogues and unrepentant con
artists?
“EFCC and the Nigerian security agencies
need to take note of the provisions of Section 34 (i) (a) of the 1999 Constitution
of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which guarantees the dignity of every
Nigerian citizen. The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Article 4,
Clause 1 & 2 also lays emphasis on the inviolability of the dignity of the
human person. It says, ‘Human beings are inviolable. Every human being shall be
entitled to respect for his life and the integrity of his person.’”
“Starving detainees is the same as
depriving them of their dignity. It dehumanizes them by turning them into
beggars. It exposes them to weakness and endangers their health. The power to
detain is not tantamount to the power to starve. No policeman under the sun has
the right to detain and starve a suspect at the same time.
“EFCC
cannot fight corruption by promoting corruption. This is what will happen if it
detains people it cannot feed. Not only that. EFCC will be encroaching on
Allah-given fundamental human rights of citizens if people are detained without
being fed. A moral burden hangs on the conscience of EFCC if this is what has
been happening. We demand an explanation”.
MURIC
also descended heavily on the ex-governor, Ayodele Fayose, accusing him of
exploiting the condition of detainees to score a cheap political point.
“Fayose is a comedian. He is exploiting
the poor condition of detainees just to score a cheap political point. He is
seeking cheap popularity. He is also a fake Robin Hood. This was not the way
Robin Hood shared his stolen money among the poor. Robin Hood gave out every
kobo stolen by him. Fayose is accused of stealing billions but he is giving out
pittance. He is playing on the gullibility of Nigerians.
“How much does it cost to bail a
detainee? How much does it cost to feed 150 people? He could not have spent up
to N50,000. It is chicken feed compared to the humongous amount allegedy stolen
by him. Fayose is like a man who stole elephants but he is deceiving the people
by giving out ants. He is a pretender. We reject his Robin Hood mentality.
“As we take a break, we charge EFCC and
the security agencies to spare us the horror of hunger in the cells. Detainees
must be adequately fed by those keeping them out of circulation. They should
not be subjected to the dehumanizing spectacle of fake Robin Hoods. We implore
the Police Service Commission to review conditions of detention in police cells
as it affects the feeding of detainees.”.
Director,
Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC).
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