The leadership of PDP has condemned what it called a brazen display of authoritarianism demonstrated by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC Government in handcuffing its National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, even when the court was yet to hear his case.
This development, the party said, betrayed “an extra-judicial, top political witch-hunt policy of the APC, that is carefully designed to humiliate, embarrass and portray PDP leaders as common criminals and set the stage to cow and decimate opposition and perceived foes of the government”.
In a statement by its national secretary, Adewale Oladipo, PDP said “if not to mortify, dehumanize and break our National Publicity Secretary, who has been very vocal against the APC administration, and of course to send a signal to others critical of the government, what else would have informed the decision to produce him in court in handcuffs, even when his case does not border on security threat?
“Is this an attempt to sway the court and ambush the judicial process against our National Publicity Secretary, all because of his stance against observed ineptitude and dictatorial tendencies of this administration?”
The PDP also called on Nigerians and the international community to note the emerging “barefaced abuse of state power and violation of constitutional provisions” regarding the arrest, detention and eventual arraignment of its spokesperson...
“Finally, while we study the bail conditions, we urge all PDP members to remain calm, united, focused and continue to pray for the nation and her people. We also urge the media to remain on the side of justice, fairness and rule of law and resist the pressure of being used as a tool to promote arbitrariness and abuse of process in the so-called fight against corruption,” the party said.
