The federal government says it is
not involved in the ongoing trial of Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, leader of the Islamic
Movement in Nigeria (IMN).
In a statement on Friday, Garba
Shehu, senior special assistant to the president on media and publicity, said
the government will no longer condone acts of violence from El-Zakzaky’s
followers.
The Shi’ia leader is facing trial
over allegations of culpable homicide, unlawful assembly, and disruption of
public peace, among others.
El-Zakzaky has been in the
custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) since December 2015.
IMN members have demanded his
release, staging massive protests, some times resulting in clashes with the
police.
Shehu asked IMN members not to
trample on the rights of others, saying the government would no longer allow
the sect to take law into its hands.
“The presidency appeals to
El-Zakzaky-led Shiite members to desist from needless violent street protests
and await the decision of the court in Kaduna where their leader is currently
being tried,” Shehu said.
“The issue of El-ZakZaky is
before the court in Kaduna and his supporters should focus on his on-going
trial instead of causing daily damages, disruptions and public nuisance in
Abuja.
“It is wrong to be in court and
resort to violence at the same time in order to get justice for anybody
accused. The destruction of public property in the name of protest is not
within the rights of this group of Shiite members and no government anywhere
would have tolerated a situation where any group would take over public roads
in cities as they have done in Abuja and interfere with the rights of other
citizens who are prevented from reaching their destinations.
“As far as this country’s
ministry of justice is concerned, the case involving El-Zakzaky is no longer in
its domain. The federal government no more has hands in the matter and to that
extent, the government at the centre can be said to be clear of any alleged
violations of court orders as being trumpeted everyday.”
The federal government urged the
Shi’ites to embrace dialogue instead of resorting to violence.
“These rallies and street dances
ostensibly to openly insult the President and other leaders, threatening
bloodshed will lead nowhere because President Buhari will not ask the country’s
judiciary to abandon due process and set a suspect free,” he said.
“At the same time, the
administration is determined to enforce the decision of the court clearly issued.
The Buhari administration has absolutely no hand in the on-going court case and
the courts are free to determine the bail request and the final outcome.
“It is always advisable to
embrace dialogue and eschew violence in all our actions so that we can continue
to live together in peace. We therefore appeal to the Shiite group to stop
deliberate provocations that result in violence and fatalities and allow the
trial of El-ZakZaky to take its course.”
On Thursday, a Kaduna state high
court had adjourned hearing the motion for an application by El-Zakzaky to seek
medical attention in India.
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