The Senate, on Tuesday, joined their colleagues in the House of Representatives to investigate the circumstances surrounding the invasion of a Federal High Court in Abuja by officers of the Department of the State Service (DSS).
Personnel of the DSS had last Friday rearrested the Convener of # Revolution Now protest and publisher of Sahara Reporters and his co- defendant, Olawale Bakare at the premises of the Federal High Court, shortly after Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu presiding over Sowore trial had adjourned the case till next February.
Before he was rearrested, Sowore and Bakare had spent 126 days in the detention facility of the DSS.
The resolution to investigate the incident in the Court room and subsequent rearrest of Sowore was sequel to the motion raised by Chairman, Senate committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal matters, Senator, Opeyemi Bamidele.
Coming under Order 43 of the Senate, the senator representing Ekiti Central said the incident has raised a lot of dust and concern both in the Bench and Bar.#
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He requested that the Senate Committee on National Security and Intelligence be mandated to investigate incident as he noted that the Senate could not pretend not to know that Nigerians were concerned about the development.
He said: ”I rise to draw the attention of this Senate to a matter that has been in public domain and especially as the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, the reported alleged invasion of the court room again by alleged officials of the Department of State Security.
” It is one issue that has raised a lot of concern in different quarters in Nigeria. The leadership and members of the judiciary are particularly concerned about this development. Because they believe like the rest of us do, that the courtroom is meant to be a sanctuary but for us a Senate, we cannot begin to take a position or analyze the issues based on conclusion without facts that we consider incontrovertible. Yet, much as we cannot just jump into conclusions, it is also a fact that we cannot pretend not to know that Nigerians are concerned about this development.
” The reason I have chosen to come under Order 43 is so that I will not generate any controversy or even make the Senate to begin to debate or engage in a debate over an issue in respect of which like I said earlier, we still need to have incontrovertible facts and evidence.
”In view of this, I just want to say that as elected representatives of the people in whom Nigerians including the judiciary must find their voice that we mandate our Committee on National Security and Intelligence to interface with the relevant security agencies, look into this matter, investigate what happened and report back to the Senate on this matter. ”
President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan directed the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Human Rights to investigate what happened and submit its report in one week.
“Distinguished colleagues, you know Order 43 does not allow for any debate and since this is a matter that affects the Judiciary, we rather mandate to your committee to find out what happened. So I would suggest that our committee on judiciary investigates, finds out what actually happened and then report back to us in one week.”
Checks revealed that the House of Representatives had on Tuesday took a similar position to investigate the alleged invasion of Justice Ojukwu Court.
The motion was sequel to a motion by the Minority Leader of the House, Honourable Ndudi Elumelu .