By Oyinkansayo Wole-Bodunde
Atiku Abubakar, former Vice President and PDP presidential candidate, has condemned the EFCC’s arrest and detention of Muhammad Kazaure, a former House of Representatives member.
Atiku expressed concerns about the agency’s disregard for due process and the rule of law.
According to Atiku, the EFCC’s actions show a pattern of lawlessness. He stated the recent arrest of VeryDarkMan as another example of the agency’s overreach.
Atiku wrote: “The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has once again plunged headlong into its well-worn pattern of lawlessness, arresting and detaining citizens with brazen disregard for due process and without offering any justification for its actions.”
He added that Kazaure’s detention without formal charges or explanation is a violation of his fundamental rights. Atiku emphasized that the EFCC must adhere to the Constitution and disclose reasons for arrests.
He said, “We witnessed this same abuse in the unlawful arrest and detention of Mr. Martins Vincent Otse, widely known as VeryDarkMan, whose release was only secured after massive public outrage and pressure. Now, the EFCC has targeted Hon. Muhammad Kazaure, a former member of the House of Representatives and an unapologetic critic of the gross misgovernance and failings of the Tinubu administration. Abducted in Kano and whisked away to Abuja, Kazaure is presently being held incommunicado, with no formal charge or explanation offered to his family, legal team, or the Nigerian people. Let it be stated without equivocation: even if there were legitimate grounds for arresting any citizen, such action must adhere strictly to the rule of law. The EFCC is duty-bound to publicly disclose the reasons for any arrest and must not detain individuals indefinitely under the guise of investigation. The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is unequivocal on this matter—every detainee must be promptly charged to court or released. By once again trampling on the fundamental rights of a Nigerian citizen, the EFCC is entrenching itself deeper into the mire of impunity and constitutional delinquency. It’s deafening silence regarding the arrest of Hon. Kazaure, a man who represented the good people of Kazaure, Roni, Gwiwa, and Yankwashi federal constituency, lays bare the agency’s contempt for transparency and justice. We are left with no choice but to conclude that Kazaure’s ordeal is a direct consequence of his fearless and unrelenting criticism of this administration. This government’s hypocrisy is as staggering as it is shameless: while it strikes cosy deals with politically connected figures tainted by corruption, it unleashes the machinery of the state to harass and silence its critics. The Nigerian people are watching. And history will not forget.”
