Sowore: What Top Yoruba Leader Said About Activist’s Re-Arrest By DSS

The Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams, has described the re-arrest of activist Omoyele Sowore as a national tragedy.

The Department of State Services (DSS) on Friday re-arrested Sowore in a courtroom in Abuja.

The incident took place just less than a day after the agency released the Sahara Reporters publisher on bail.

Reacting to this development, Adams said Nigeria had lost it when it comes to democracy.

He claimed that this incident portrayed that the rule of law is dying in the West African nation.

According to him, Nigeria under President Muhammadu Buhari is returning to the days of the military junta.

“What happened at the court reminded me of the dark era of the military but, ironically, the present government under President Muhammadu Buhari is like the military junta of the late Sani Abacha in which the military brigandage held sway for years,” he told Daily Independent.

“I have been watching events as they unfold, but I am saddened that the event that transpired in the court was a testimony that Nigeria has a long way to go.

“The Department of State Services (DSS) failed to respect the rule of law and it was a sad reminder of the military era.”

Furthermore, he recalled how he and some other persons fought for the enthronement of democratic rule in the country.

Adams lamented that despite himself and these persons putting their lives on the line during Nigeria’s military era, the democracy they fought for is dying.

“This is not the democracy we fought for between 1993 and 1998. I remember vividly as activists and pro-democracy groups, we put our lives on the line to ensure that our dreams for this democracy became a reality,” he added.

“Now, democracy is here, but we have lost touch with the ideals of a democratic setting as it is practised in other climes.”