popular Nigerian lawyer and rights activist was
detained overnight on Wednesday, January 14, 2015
for allegedly addressing President Muhammadu Buhari
in a disrespectful way.
Emeka Ugwuonye, Esquire, Group Founder/Principal
Administrator of Due Process Advocates (DPA), was
stopped by operatives of the Department of State
Service (DSS) upon arrival at the Murtala Mohammed
International Airport, Lagos.
"They told me they would have to hear from Abuja
(DSS Headquarters) before allowing me to go," Mr.
Ugwuonye, a senior lawyer who practises in Nigeria
and the United States of America, said "I had to tell my driver and personal
assistant to go when I was not released as at
midnight,"
Mr. Ugwuonye, who was not
allowed to go until after clearance by Abuja, was
detained in connection with a video he recently
uploaded on the DPA Facebook page in which he said that President Buhari must obey court orders. "He
talked as if he was ordering the President," a DSS
source said, adding that Buhari should be talked to
with respect as he is the President and Commander-in-
Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces.
Ugwuonye said, "This is unacceptable. I am going to
sue them on Monday."
He repeated what he said in the video, insisting that
Buhari, who recently declared in public not to obey
some court orders, has no option than to abide by the
dictates of the Nigerian Constitution and has no right
to choose court orders to obey.
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