Femi Falana
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has commended the ruling of the Kaduna State High Court which ordered the release of the leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, Sheikh Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, and his wife, Zeenat for medical treatment.
Mr Falana who was a guest on Channels Television’s breakfast programme, Sunrise Daily, said allowing them to go for medical treatment abroad has saved the country from a major crisis.
“I was pleased to learn last night that the State Security Service announced that the order will be complied with and I think that is a good development,” he said.
The Senior Advocate of Nigeria also called for the immediate release of others in custody.
“I do hope that other court orders including the one of Dasuki will be complied with so that we can join the rest of the committee of civilized nations”.
Also speaking about the recent arrest of the publisher of online news medium, Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, he said Nigerians are entitled to peaceful protests.
However, according to him, the government is clamping down on the protesters this time around because of the use of the word “revolution”.
“If you are going to detain a citizen like Sowore, you can’t detain him for more than 24 hours in a place like Lagos.
“If you are going to detain Sowore beyond 24 hours, you must go and get a court order,” he stated.
Sowore was arrested on August 3 over what was believed to be a series of planned protests against bad governance in the country scheduled for August 5, 2019.
