NIGERIAN Leaders and Elders Forum on Tuesday condemned in strong term the raid carried out by men of the Nigeria Police on the Abuja residence of an elder statesman, Chief Edwin Clark, on the spurious allegation that there were “arms and ammunition” stockpiled in the house, expressing surprise at the development, even as it demanded an immediate apology to Chief Clark by the police whose leadership it said had currently shown serial unprofessionalism and dark age policing.
“The Nigerian Leaders and Elders Forum demands an immediate apology to Chief Clark by the Nigeria Police whose leadership at the moment has shown serial unprofessionalism and dark age policing,” the Forum said.
This was just as the Forum saw the raid as a sad reminder of full-blown dictatorship in 1984 during which the home of the sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo was ransacked in Ikenne by soldiers and officials of then dreaded Nigerian Security Organisation (NSO).
The leaders’ forum, comprising Afenifere, the Northern Elders Forum (NEF), the Ohanaeze, Middle Belt Forum (MBF) and PANDEF, gave this position in a joint statement issued by
Mr Yinka Odumakin, Dr. Junaid Mohammed, Prof. Chigozie Ogbu, Dr. Isuwa Dogo and Senator Bassey Henshaw respectively.
“The Nigerian Leaders and Elders Forum is flabbergasted by the Gestapo-like raid on the Abuja home of 91-year-old elder-statesman and Leader of Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), Chief E. K. Clark by men of the Nigeria Police on the spurious allegation that there were ‘arms and ammunition’ stockpiled in the house,” the leaders said.
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The Forum, while describing the invasion as shameful in a manner that indicated worst signal of Nigeria becoming a police state, said the police could not even “find more than a kitchen knife regularly used to slice tomato and onion.”
The leaders said they viewed the search which they described as “provocative” not arising from any intelligence report but a sheer act of intimidation on a home that had served as a meeting point for patriots across Nigeria who were engaged in peaceful consultations to save the country from the edge of the precipice.
The leaders forum, while also viewing the The raid is a sad reminder of the era of full-blown dictatorship in 1984 when the Ikenne home of the sage, Chief Awolowo was ransacked by soldiers and officials of the dreaded NSO, whose conduct it said had only been rivalled by the DSS under the sacked Malam Lawan Daura, declared that the traumatization of Pa Clark at age 91 was yet another proof that mad power had taken over Nigeria’s polity.
“The raid is a sad reminder of the era of full-blown dictatorship in 1984 when the home of Chief Obafemi Awolowo was ransacked in Ikenne by soldiers and officials of the dreaded NSO whose conduct has only been rivalled by the DSS under Daura before he was removed when the President was on vacation abroad.
“The traumatization of Pa Clark at 91 is yet another proof that mad power has taken over our polity and its desperation now walking on four with all boundaries of decency collapsed for raw display of beastly tendencies,” the leaders said.
The leaders, however, warned that if the object of the intimidation was to send fear signals to patriots who were demanding better leadership for the country, the administration led by President Muhammadu Buhari should know that such move has backfired.
“We want to sound it loud and clear to the administration that if the object of this intimidation is to send fear signals to patriots who are demanding better leadership for our country, it has backfired,” they said.
“We all counted the cost before we chose to embark on standing up for the country,” the leaders added, declaring that: “Our battle cry remains: no retreat, no surrender.”
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