Our President’s Affront to the Rule of Law Under a Democracy- Yemi Aadebowale

Our democracy and the rule of law are on trial with the brazen disregard for court orders by the Buhari administration. Accused granted bail by our law courts are rearrested and humiliated by security operatives apparently on the orders of the President. The cases of Sambo Dasuki, Nnamdi Kanu and Patrick Akpobolokemi readily come to mind. Buhari confirmed his involvement in this impropriety and disregard for the rule of law during the Presidential Media Chart on Wednesday when he defended the illegal actions against Dasuki and Kanu. Our President is clearly not living by his oath to protect the constitution. The pro-democracy activists that fought late Sani Abacha to a standstill must rise up and confront Buhari, otherwise, things will get out of hands. We must not allow this brand new dictatorship to mature. Court orders must be obeyed by all. It is not about these accused being guilty or not but a fight for the rule of law and the constitution of this country. In the case of Dasuki, the Department of the State Security Service (DSS) operatives refused to allow him go home on bail, even after perfecting the third bail granted by Justice Affem, who admitted him on bail on the grounds that his alleged offences were bailable. The judge further banned the EFCC from re-arresting the former NSA boss.

Earlier, Justice Adeniyi Ademola of the Federal High Court also in Abuja, granted the ex-NSA bail on November 3 in the charge of unlawful possession of firearms, but the bail was on November 4 scuttled by the SSS operatives, who laid siege to his Asokoro residence and placed him under house arrest. They eventually re-arrested him. He was later arraigned before Justice Yusuf Baba of the Abuja High Court on breach of trust and was granted bail. But the DSS also refused to obey this. Lovers of democracy must rise up against the Buhari impunity. It is heartwarming to note that human rights lawyer, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa has added his voice to the condemnation of this dictatorship and humiliation of the judiciary. “To have arrested him (Dasuki) and taken him into custody is to openly be pointing hands in the face of the court. And when we get to the stage where the executive has no respect for the judiciary, we are approaching anarchy. We are approaching despotism and once people lose confidence in the judiciary we get to the state of anarchy and lawlessness; we’d get to a stage where individuals will no longer be ready to submit themselves to the rule of law,” said Adegboruwa. This is food for thought for our pro-democracy and human rights activists.

THISDAY