Femi Falana writes an open letter to President Buhari to demand release of 40 Nigerians illegally detained by the Navy

RELATED:

 Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana has written to President Buhari to order the release of 40 Nigerians who have been in “illegal custody” of the Nigerian navy. In an open letter to the President, the Senior Advocate of Nigeria said he has  received complaints from the family members of 40 detainees who have been held incommunicado in dehumanising conditions for periods of six to eight months. According to Falana, the “unlawful detention” contravened sections of the 1999 constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights Ratification and Enforcement. Falana added that “In fact, some of the detainees are incarcerated in an underground military detention facility in Abuja while others are held inside one of the vessels impounded by the Nigerian Navy in Marina, Lagos”. Below is the full letter written to the President by Femi Falana.“May 19, 2019His Excellency,Alhaji Mohammadu Buhari,President & Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces,Presidential Villa,Aso Rock,Abuja.Your Excellency,REQUEST FOR RELEASE OF 40 NIGERIAN CITIZENS FROM ILLEGAL CUSTODY OF NIGERIAN NAVYWe have received complaints from the family members of 40 Nigerian citizens who are being detained without trial on the orders of the Authorities of the Nigerian Navy. The names of the detainees are :1. Captain Dada Labinjo,2. Lt. Commander Sherifat Ibe Lambert3. Benjamin Gold4. Peter Pulle,5. Pius Paul,6. Onoja Reuben,7. Adeleke Adewale,8. Labinjo Kehinde,9. Ogunmoyero Oluwasehun,10. Emmanuel Oputa,11. Innocent Sunday,12. Iejoro Friday,13. Hamza Yakubu,14. Segun Yusuf.15. Master-Melvin Jack ;16 Chief Mate-Adebayo Mayoma17. Chief Mate- Francis Oneyema18 2nd Eng-Godwill Umoh19 Bosin-Miebaka Iyala20 Elect 2-Edu Fidelis21. Elect 2-Richard David22 Camp Boss-Daniel Harrison23. Asaiki Okeoghene24 AB 1-Omogoye Bolaji25 AB 2-Victor Uchendu26 AB 3-Oloyede Ademola27. Oiler-Simon Onyisi Mike28. Eng cadet-Udom Victor Jerome29 Godwin Etiaka Ojodusi30. Sixtus Ganabel31 Owei Ukuto32 Jeremiah Victor33 Collins Joel34. Augustine Omonisa35 MV Akemijo Deborah36 Mike Simeon37 Umoren Daniel38 James Archibong39 Umon Godswill Emmanuel40. MT Adeline JumboIt may interest Your Excellency to know that the above named detainees have been held incommunicado in dehumanising conditions for periods ranging from six to eight months. In fact, some of the detainees are incarcerated in an underground military detention facility in Abuja while others are held inside one of the vessels impounded by the Nigerian Navy in Marina, Lagos. The detainees have been subjected to mental, psychological and physical torture contrary to the provisions of the Anti Torture Act, 2017.Furthermore, in utter contempt of court the authorities of the Nigerian Navy have defied valid and subsisting orders of competent courts for the unconditional release of some of the detainees. Apart from such contemptuous conduct the Nigerian Navy recently denied knowledge of the whereabouts of the 15 detainees held in a detention facility in Abuja. As soon as we pointed out that the remand order procured by the Nigerian Navy for the detention of the 15 detainees had been quashed by the Chief Magistrate Court in Apapa, Lagos State the Naval Authorities turned round to file criminal charges against 5 of them before a Court Martial. Since all the detainees are entitled to their fundamental rights to dignity and liberty guaranteed by sections 34 and 35 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended and articles 5 and 6 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights Ratification and Enforcement Act (Cap A9) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, we urge Your Excellency to direct the Chief Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, to either release the detainees from unlawful custody or arraign them in court without any further delay.In view of the fact that the illegal detention of the 40 Nigerian citizens for several months without trial has exposed the Federal Government to unwarranted embarrassment the Chief of Naval Staff ought to be sanctioned by Your Excellency.Please accept the assurances of our highest esteem.Yours sincerely,FEMI FALANA, SAN, FCI Arb.”The post Femi Falana writes an open letter to PresidentBuhari to demand release of 40 Nigerians illegally detained by the Navy appeared first on Linda Ikeji Blog.