Malami murmured for a few seconds in an attempt to wave the question before telling the show anchor that, “As the Attorney-General of the Federation, the issue before me is that of Sowore.”
Attorney-General of the Federal, Abubakar Malami (SAN), refused to explain why President Muhammadu Buhari carried out a coup in 1983 and also called for a revolution in 2011 in a recent television interview.
Malami was asked the question while appearing on BBC Focus on Wednesday in reaction to the continued detention of pro-democracy campaigner and Publisher of Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, by Buhari’s regime for calling for a revolution of ideas in leadership in Nigeria.
Asked why the President, who spearheaded a military coup in 1983 and also called for a revolution in 2011 was being hypocritical and taking offence in someone else doing the same, Malami murmured for a few seconds in an attempt to wave the question before telling the show anchor that, “As the Attorney-General of the Federation, the issue before me is that of Sowore.”
When told by the show anchor that Sowore never called for a violent overthrow of the government, Malami insisted that the act of calling for a revolution amounts to treasonable felony as far as he was concerned.
He said, “As far as I am concerned, treason is treason and if you are charged with such, you are entitled to present your case.
“We operate a system of government that recognises the independence of the judiciary.
“What we have done is to present our case to the judiciary which enjoys independence and freedom to decide one way or the other.
“We have not taken the law into our hands by adjudging him (Sowore) guilty but presenting him before the judicial process so he can have an opportunity to offer a counter case for consideration and determination of the court.”
Earlier on Tuesday, a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja ordered the Department of State Services to release Sowore on bail.
But despite the ruling by Justice Taiwo Taiwo, the secret police has refused to obey that order, forcing the court on Thursday to issue a warning to the Director-General of the DSS, Yusuf Bichi, of being jailed over the failure to obey the verdict.
Sowore was arrested in the early hours of August 3, 2019 by DSS operatives in Lagos for calling on Nigerians to take to the streets and express their anger over the poor state of leadership in the country.
Despite calls from around the world for his freedom, Buhari’s regime has continued to hold on to him, violating his fundamental human rights in the process.