A court has ruled that 124 #EndBadGovernance protesters be detained for 60 days, sparking concerns over the handling of dissent and civil rights in the ongoing crackdown.
A court in Abuja, known as the Federal High Court, has granted permission to detain 124 participants of the #EndBadGovernance demonstrations for an additional two months so that they can be investigated further by law enforcement.
Ex-parte motions presented by Ibrahim Mohammed, representing the Inspector-General of Police were heard and ruled upon by Justice Emeka Nwite.
Until the investigation is concluded, the suspects are allowed to be temporarily detained based on the court’s ruling.
During the investigation phase, Justice Nwite decreed that all detained minors must be confined to Borstal Home at the correctional facility.
As per a certified authentic document acquired by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), an initial petition filed on August 14 put forth that the suspects be detained for sixty days until legal counsel is obtained from the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF). The accused individuals, whose ages range between fourteen and thirty-four years old, were charged with severe accusations such as terrorism, treason, and arson.
Abubakar Ibrahim (18), Suleiman Ali (16), Mubarak Mas’ud (23), and several others have been charged. The allegations made by the police are that they violated numerous sections of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022, Criminal Code Act, Penal Code Act alongside other relevant statutes through their actions.
In her affidavit, Litigation Secretary Elizabeth Ogochukwu of the Police Force Headquarters disclosed that reliable intelligence had exposed plans for a violent uprising aimed at overthrowing the Nigerian government. Despite increased security measures put in place prior to this protest, it resulted in considerable turmoil including property damage and endangerment to public safety.
It is suspected that the suspects were caught in the act and discovered with Russian flags along with other materials indicating their involvement in prohibited terrorist groups. The investigation continues as authorities work to locate and arrest any accomplices who may still be at large.
On August 21, the court filed a distinct motion that mandated imprisonment of an extra 49 defendants for identical time period. Allegedly these suspects contributed funds to terrorism and worked alongside foreign entities in their efforts to disrupt the stability of the country.
Further mention of the case has been postponed until October 23.
