Amnesty International has rejected the Nigerian Police Force’s claim that five men arrested in Maiduguri while wearing “Tinubu Must Go” T-shirts were in possession of drugs, describing the explanation as an attempt to justify what it called their unlawful detention.
After the nationwide outrage which trailed their arrests, the Borno State Police Command denied that the motive of arrest was political, reports Daily Trust.
In a statement yesterday, Nahum Daso Kenneth , Police Public Relations Officer in the state, said, “The Command wishes to categorically state that the Nigeria Police Force is a professional, non-partisan institution and does not discriminate against persons on the basis of political affiliation or viewpoint.”
The police alleged that they conspired to print and wear T-shirts bearing the inscription “Tinubu Must Go” with the intention of causing a breach of public peace around the West End Roundabout area of the city.
The police subsequently defended the arrests, saying the suspects were also in possession of drugs.
But in a statement, Amnesty dismissed the drug allegation and accused the police of introducing a new narrative in an attempt to justify the continued detention of the men.
The rights organisation demanded the immediate and unconditional release of the five men — Baba Aji Gremami, Mustapha Abba Yemen, Abacha Mohammed Ali, Adam Umar Gubio and Abdulhamid Mohammed — insisting that expressing a dissenting political opinion is not a criminal offence.
The organisation said the Borno State Police Command must end what it described as “bizarre and desperate attempts” to justify the arrests.
It said linking the five men to drugs and other crimes was a “familiar playbook” aimed at justifying political repression and undermining democratic freedoms.
“Earlier, police accused the five men for alleged inciting disturbance, breach of public peace, and thuggery, and now linking them to drugs manifests a desperate attempt to punish them for their peaceful political activities,” Amnesty said.
The organisation argued that, in the absence of a recognisable criminal offence arising from the men’s political expression, the new drug allegation appeared to be an additional attempt to build a case against them.
Amnesty maintained that citizens in Borno State and across Nigeria have the right to support or oppose political parties and candidates without fear of arrest or reprisal.
It said freedom of political expression was not constitutionally reserved for supporters of any particular political party.
“The five men must be released immediately and unconditionally. Holding and expressing dissenting political opinion is not a crime,” the organisation said.
Amnesty also called on the Nigeria Police and the Borno State Government to end what it described as arbitrary arrests and detention of opposition members and supporters.
It warned that continued arrests over peaceful political expression could further restrict civic space and freedom of expression in the state.
The men were reportedly arraigned before a Chief Magistrate Court in Maiduguri, where they pleaded not guilty.
Their lawyers subsequently applied for bail, with the court expected to rule on the application on October 6, while the substantive case was adjourned to October 26.
The police allegations and Amnesty’s characterisation of the arrests remain contested, with the police maintaining that the suspects committed offences beyond merely wearing the T-shirts.
