Kogi West people want detained LG boss released or charged to court

THE people of Kogi west senatorial district on Monday raised the alarm over the continued detention of the administrator of Ijumu local government, Alhaji Taofiq Isa, saying he should be charged to court rather than being detained.

Apart from this, they also said the health of the local government boss had deteriorated and should be released to treat himself.

The people made their position known during a rally and peace protest organised by the seven local government areas that made up the senatorial district at the Kabba township stadium, Kabba local government area of the state.

A senior special assistant to the governor on youth empowerment, Mr Banji Ayelabowo, charged the Inspector General of Police (IGP) should release Isa from detention to enable him attend to his health challenges.

He said there was the need to either arraign the local government administrator before a competent court of jurisdiction to enable him prove his innocence or release him.

The gathering included youth, women, students, political leaders and office holders from Kogi West Senatorial.

The people displayed various placard with inscriptions like “Hon Taofiq Isah should not be subjected to media prosecution, let the court decide”, “Federation of Yagba students condemn continued detention of Hon Taofiq Isah without trial and Kogi West is united for peace”, amongst others.

Also speaking, leader of the Kogi Integrity Group, Zaccheus Dare called on the IGP to charge Isa to court without further delay to decide the matter rather than keeping him perpetually in custody,  thus violating his fundamental human rights.

“Enough is enough of these violations of fundamental rights of the people. We will hit the streets in protests if Taofiq is not charged to court or released,” he said.

Also, the spokespersons of the Okun Youth and that of National Association of Kogi State Students (NAKOSS), said delaying the trial of the ALGON chairman could hinder justice.

The groups also expressed concerns over the health conditions of the Administrator, saying he had stayed long in detention without access to his physicians.