EDITORIAL
Since he traded his khaki uniform for an Agbada, President Buhari and his image makers have worked relentlessly to launder his image from a cold-blooded military dictator to a reformed democrat who is ready to submit to the rule of law. Thus far, he has failed woefully, not because it’s such an onerous task to accomplish, but mostly due to a lack of willingness to even try
It has been almost twenty-one months since Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Biafran separatist movement, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), was illegally abducted from the East African country of Kenya and detained by the Nigerian authorities. He was slammed with 15-count charge ranging from acts of terrorism to treasonable felony and held in custody by the Department of State Services (DSS).
After more than a year of being incarcerated and following an intense legal battle mounted by Mr. Kanu’s defense lawyers, on October 13, 2022, a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal in Abuja led by Justice Jummai Sankey, struck out all the remaining seven charges against Mr. Kanu. This followed an earlier ruling of the trial judge, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja, in April of that same year, dismissing eight of the 15 amended counts filed against him by the Federal Government.
Delivering judgment, the court held that Mr. Kanu’s rendition from Kenya in June 2021 to Nigeria was a breach of the IPOB leader’s fundamental human rights. The presiding judge ordered the immediate release of Mr. Kanu from the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).
However, the Federal Government of Nigeria, acting through the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, refused to release the IPOB leader. Instead, it filed an appeal before the Supreme Court challenging the appeal court judgment, as well as an application seeking to stay the execution of the appellate court’s judgment. Ruling on the application, the court of appeal granted the government’s request, and Mr. Kanu remains in detention up till this day.
In the past, when leaders of Ohanaeze Ndigbo and other South-East leaders of thought met with President Buhari and opted for a political solution to Mr. Kanu’s debacle, he (the President) told them that the matter was before the courts and was not up to him to decide. He claimed that he does not interfere with judicial matters. This is one area where the President’s actions and body language are dictated by who is involved and from which part of the country.
The same government, through the AGF in 2019, intervened on behalf of Senator Danjuma Goje in a case involving the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). This intervention led to the discharge of the Senator from a N25 billion corruption case before the Federal High Court sitting in Jos. While we are not privy to the reason behind the administration’s special interest in this one case, the Senator and former Governor of Gombe, who was originally interested in the race to lead the red chamber, later stepped down for Ahmad Lawan, President Buhari’s preferred candidate, who eventually emerged as the Senate President.
In the case of Mr. Kanu, even though the court unequivocally discharged him, the government found a reason to bring yet other charges. This is the same government that has constantly been in the habit of amending charges brought against this same individual, moving the goal post each time.
It is also note worthy that this same government in the case with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) before the National Industrial Court recently, insisted that ASUU must first obey the court’s judgment before approaching the appeal court for stay of execution.
Recall that in September 2021, Mr Malami told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in New York that the Federal Government had succeeded in identifying about 400 individuals responsible for funding terrorist activities in the country and that the Buhari administration even had some of them in custody. He also promised to begin the prosecution of those involved. But that was the last Nigerians would hear anything about those cases.
How do you explain a government that sets free known sponsors of terror but refuses to release a citizen accused but was discharged and cleared by a court of competent jurisdiction? What do you call an administration that refuses to uphold the rule of law and spits on the constitution that it swore to uphold?
Historically, there have been many examples of governments that have refused to obey the law. One example is the Nazi regime in Germany during World War II. The Nazis enacted a series of laws and policies that violated the basic human rights of Jews and other minority groups, including the Nuremberg Laws of 1935 that stripped Jews of their citizenship and civil rights. The Nazi government also ignored the Geneva Convention and engaged in widespread war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the Holocaust.
More recently, there have been concerns about the erosion of the rule of law in countries like Russia, Turkey, and Venezuela. In January 2021, Russian authorities arrested and detained the opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, after he returned to Russia from Germany, where he was receiving medical treatment following an assassination attempt. This led to widespread protests and demonstrations in Russia, with many people calling for the government to respect the rule of law and release Navalny.
In Turkey, one high-profile case is that of journalist Ahmet Altan, who was sentenced to life in prison in 2018 on charges of attempting to overthrow the government. Altan has maintained his innocence, and his imprisonment has been widely criticised as a violation of his right to freedom of expression.
In yet another example, President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela, in 2017, formed a new constituent assembly to rewrite the country’s constitution, effectively bypassing the democratically elected National Assembly. This move was widely criticised as a violation of the rule of law, and the opposition refused to recognise the new assembly. The whole country has been in chaos ever since.
In all of these cases, the failure of the government to obey laws has had significant consequences. It has led to human rights abuses, widespread political instability, and a total breakdown in the rule of law.
Since he traded his khaki uniform for an Agbada, President Buhari and his image makers have worked relentlessly to launder his image from a cold-blooded military dictator to a reformed democrat who is ready to submit to the rule of law. Thus far, he has failed woefully, not because it is such an onerous task to be one, but mostly due to a lack of willingness to even try.
With May around the corner, President Buhari does not have the luxury of time to salvage whatever is left of his battered image. He should, as a matter of urgency, obey the appellate court’s ruling that set Nnamdi Kanu free. Otherwise, in less than two months, he will be leaving Aso Rock not just as the most inept and provincial leader of post-independence Nigeria but will also carry with him the inglorious stain of an irredeemable dictator. History beckons!
