EKITI CONDEMNS TERRORISM CHARGES

The government of Ekiti State has described the terrorism charge made against Funminiyi Afuye the Commissioner for Integration and Inter-governmental Affairs, , and 11 others as “a flagrant abuse of the 2013 Terrorism Prevention Act”.



The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Wale Fapohunda, who addressed reporters after the

exco meeting in the company of the Commissioner for Information, Tayo Ekundayo, said the council regretted that the Federal Government had fallen into the trend of “oppressive regimes, where anti-terrorism laws are used as a weapon against the opposition and regime opponents”.

The Attorney-General said the council has agreed that a letter be written to the Minister of Justice, drawing his attention to the abuse of the Terrorism Prevention Act and urging him to advise the police to immediately release the detainees. Fapounda said the council also resolved that Governor Kayode Fayemi should draw the attention of President Goodluck Jonathan to the danger inherent in the abuse of law, adding: “Such flagrant abuse of the act is a threat to the fundamental human rights of Nigerians as contained in the constitution and could undermine Nigeria’s democracy.”

The State Executive Council, at its weekly meeting, said the charge was not only an abuse of the Anti-terrorism Act, but also “an affront to the criminal justice process and trivialises the seriousness of the scale of terrorism in Nigeria”.