Aare Onakakanfo of Yoruba land, Iba Gani Adams, has condemned the continuous detention of Yoruba nation activist, Chief Sunday Adeyemo popularly called Sunday Igboho without trial, describing it as a misplacement of justice, even as he insisted that the Benin Republic court had no respect for human rights.
Iba Adams said this in a statement issued on Tuesday by his Special Assistant on Media, Mr Kehinde Aderemi, expressing disappointment at the manner in which the Republic of Benin handled Igboho’s case.
The Yoruba generalissimo, however, applauded the efforts of the activist’s counsel, Chief Yomi Aliyu (SAN), to seek redress from the ECOWAS Court.
Adams, while condemning the continuous detention of Igboho, who he said had not committed any offence, posited that it was evident that the Yoruba nation activist’s rights had been violated by the Republic of Benin Court, adding that his prolonged detention had shown that the laws of Benin Republic was no respecter of human rights.
“There was misplacement of justice in the way Igboho’s detention was extended without trial. It is evident that the Benin Republic has taken Igboho’s case far beyond the normal legal procedures.
IN CASE YOU MISSED THESE FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
- ‘Officials initially offered to help but when the number of able-bodied citizens at the centre increased, they left us unattended to’
- Why Ogun Tops List Of ‘Yahoo Boys’ In Nigeria ― Governor Abiodun
- Police, Amotekun after criminals on Lagos-Ibadan expressway
- Suspected cannibal pays N500,000 for boy’s human organs, says ‘that’s my favourite meal, especially the throat’
- Court awards Nnamdi Kanu N1 billion over invasion of his home by military, asks FG to apologise
“He never committed any crime. He was just expressing his displeasure under the ambit of law. However, despite the fact that there was no criminal charges against him, the Benin Republic Court still detained him unjustly without trial,” he said.
“The extension of the detention of Igboho further exposed the frailty in the administration of justice. The young man’s rights have been abused without trial. He had not been convicted of any offence. The law of any country that claims to be guided by the rule of law should be explicit on the rights of individual citizens.
“Having spent over six months unjustly in Benin detention, it is sad that the young man’s rights have been trampled upon, especially, for spending much longer than it should be for a person who had not been convicted of any offence and a person who is not a criminal by any standard,” he added.
Adams urged Yoruba in the diaspora to present Igboho’s case to the global communities, saying efforts should be made to seek redress beyond the continent, so as not to short live the legal process as it was done with the SaharaReporters publisher, Omoyele Sowore’s case.