A former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr Obadiah Mailafia, says his life is in danger.
Mailafia was reacting to the third invitation extended to him by the Department of State Services.
The former CBN deputy governor, in a statement in Jos on Friday, described the latest DSS invitation as political persecution and urged well-meaning people to pray for his safety.
He said, “Dear Comrades, Beloved Brethren, I have once again (for the 3rd time) been ordered to appear before the DSS at their Jos HQ this coming Monday 14th September, at 11.00 am.
“This is in addition to our battle in court, as my lawyer appears before a Jos High Court today Friday the 11th, seeking a restraining order against the DIG Criminal Investigations Department (CID) who are also pursuing me.
“I spent over 20 years of my working life abroad as a university teacher, banker and international civil servant with unblemished record.
“I have no criminal record — not even a parking ticket. Sadly, it is in my own fatherland that I’m being subjected to criminal investigation and such extreme political persecution.
“Please, pray for me. I have reasons to believe that my life is in danger and that some powerful political forces want to silence me forever for speaking the truth.
“For speaking on behalf of the holy martyrs — of thousands of innocent children, women, elderly and youths that have been killed in our beloved country. It is only in our benighted country that a man who speaks from his conscience can be hounded like a common criminal.
“Please, those of you in the Jos area or who can easily travel to Jos, please kindly mobilise and be there en masse to support me on Monday at 11.00 am as I go once again into the Lions’ Den. I’m a believer in nonviolence. Please, no-one should throw even a little stone on my behalf. Let us become candles of light and peace in this Age of Darkness. Thank you so immensely and may God bless you all.”
Meanwhile, the National Consultative Front being piloted by a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Umar Na’Abba, and former presidential candidate, Pat Utomi, on Friday condemned the third invitation extended by the DSS to Mailafia.
The NCFront threatened “a major mass action” should anything happen to its leaders and associates, including Mailafia.
The organisation called on the government to refrain from further harassment of Mailafia and its other leaders by cautioning security agencies.
A statement by the group’s Head of Public Affairs Bureau and former presidential candidate of the National Conscience Party, Tanko Yunusa, said the invitation scheduled for Monday in Jos would be coming on the heels of a similar one by the Nigerian Police which is currently being contested in court.
The statement partly read, “We demand that nothing untoward should happen to any of our leaders and associates to avoid a major mass action. The NCFront believes in the right of every Nigerian to freely express themselves in civil society especially in a democracy as enshrined in the universal fundamental principles of human rights.
“We, therefore, unequivocally condemn this maltreatment of a respectable Nigerian like him and we stand firmly by him in this hour of his travails. Painting Mailafia in a bad light and attempting to pin on him an image of criminality is not only preposterous but also sinister.
“We are shocked to discover that Nigeria today is being run like a dictatorship by the current administration, which has developed a great penchant for gaging Nigerian citizens, denying them of their constitutional rights of freedom of expression and peaceful dissension.
“We, as concerned citizens, have reviewed Mailafia’s interviews, which was claimed to have prompted the curious invitation by security agencies and can not find any serious threat or breach in it to warrant his being constantly harassed by the security agencies, especially the Police and the DSS.
“We also note that Nigeria is currently bedeviled by aggravated insecurity that threatens the very existence of the country and would expect the security agencies to be preoccupied with dealing with such deadly existential threats against the country rather than concentrating all their energies on repressing a responsible citizen into silence. In a democracy, the citizens are protected by the law to freely express themselves without any form of intimidation by government.
“However, it is increasingly obvious that this government does not appreciate that vital component of democracy judging by the manners it has so far treated Nigerians who do not agree with its policies including journalists. This is not only unacceptable but absolutely reprehensible.”
The Punch