A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Mike Ozekhome, has criticised the arrest, of Protesters of the #OccupyLekkiTollGate at the Lekki Toll Gate, Lagos State. They included comedian, Debo Adebayo, popularly known as Mr Macaroni. About 40 of them, they were arraigned before a Mobile Court, and charged with, among other things, a breach of the peace and public disorder. They were granted bail same day, Saturday.
Of the arrest, Ozekhome said that it is disheartening that the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu and the Federal Government will arrest Protesters staging a peaceful protest.
He stressed that even during the military dispensation, people were allowed to protest peacefully.
According to him, “It is patently illegal and totally unconstitutional to to detain Debo Macaroni . At least the Nigerian constitution has not been abrogated by this dictatorial government of impunity. Sections 40 and 41 of the constitution give Debo and others the right to peaceful assembly and association and the right to freedom of movement.
“Even under military dictatorship, as one of the founding fathers of the Civil Liberties Organization, CLO, (the first indigenous human rights organisation in Nigeria founded on October 15, 1987), I was allowed to demonstrate and protest on the streets by successive military juntas.
“Debo and the other protesters have done no wrong to protest. It has not been shown that it was violent . Is the Federal government truly saying Nigerians should no longer protest? Then, the Federal Government should dissolve the people and select or elect another one of its choice.”
