A cousin to former President Goodluck Jonathan, Barr. Azibaola Robert has<\/p>\n
petitioned the House of Representatives, protesting what he dubbed
\nillegal detention by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).<\/p>\n
Robert, Managing Director of Kakatar Construction and Engineering Company
\nLimited, who has been in EFCC custody since March 23, 2016, urged the
\nlawmakers to intervene in what he described as EFCC’s breach of his
\nfundamental human rights.<\/p>\n
In the complaint document signed by Dr. Faith Robert, presented to the House
\nThursday by Hon. Kingsley Chinda (PDP, Rivers) the petitioner urged the
\nHouse to ensure that his rights were restored.<\/p>\n
The petition reads in part: “Mr. Azibaola Robert is the Managing Director of
\n\u2018Kakatar Engineering and Construction Company Limited\u2019, and its sister
\ncompany, \u2018One Plus Holdings Limited\u2019. He is a cousin to former President
\nGoodluck Ebele Jonathan, and a law abiding and peace loving Nigerian”.<\/p>\n
“Recently, operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)
\narrested the said Mr. Azibaola Robert over allegations of a $40 million
\ncontract which the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) awarded
\nto \u2018One Plus Holdings Limited\u2019 for the surveillance and security of oil
\npipelines across the Niger Delta. The ONSA is at present indebted to the
\ncompany (One Plus Holdings Limited) to about $4 million, being final
\npayment for the said surveillance\/oil pipeline security contract.<\/p>\n
“Mr. Azibaola Robert was arrested and taken into EFCC custody on 23rd
\nMarch, 2016 and has since spent over a month in EFCC detention, without
\nany formal charge brought against him. Preceding his arrest, however was a
\nraid on his house by scores of heavily armed mobile Policemen who in the
\nprocess subjected his wife and young Children to the most dehumanizing and
\ntraumatic ordeal.<\/p>\n
“In EFCC custody, Mr. Azibaola Robert has been denied access to his
\nfamily, lawyers and medicare and repeatedly bullied, harassed, threatened
\nand psychologically traumatised by EFCC operatives, and no formal charge
\nbrought against him.<\/p>\n
“Curiously, his interrogators have told him in very clear terms to say
\nsomething to finger and\/or implicate former President Goodluck Jonathan,
\nhis cousin, as a \u2018front\u2019 or beneficiary of the surveillance\/security
\ncontract; else he would face the \u201cDasuki treatment\u201d and rot away in EFCC
\ncustody.<\/p>\n
“We note the clear provisions of Chapter IV of the 1999 Constitution of
\nthe Federal Republic of Nigeria, dealing with Fundamental Rights,
\nparticularly the right to dignity of the human person (S.34); right to
\npersonal liberty (S.35); and the right to fair hearing (S. 36)”, the
\npetitioner opined.<\/p>\n
Going further, she said: “Equally instructive is the fact that upon an
\napplication for the enforcement of his Fundamental Human Rights, a High
\nCourt of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on 7th April, 2016 granted
\nMr. Azibaola Robert bail and after meeting the bail conditions, a
\nproduction warrant of the same court was served on the EFCC on 12th April.
\nYet, the EFCC has refused to release him on bail or charge him to court,
\nbut continued to treat the order of a court of competent jurisdiction with
\ncontempt. We cannot therefore comprehend why the EFCC would deliberately
\nviolate the above constitutional provisions and order of court”.<\/p>\n
The petition alleged that the arrest and detention of Mr. Robert was part
\nof a larger plot by the anti graft body to get the former President by al
\nmeans necessary.<\/p>\n
“Also and seemingly to underscore the \u201cget Jonathan at all cost or
\nlanguish in detention theory\u201d is the fact that whilst some other persons
\nwho were arrested and detained with Mr. Azibaola have been released, Mr.
\nAzibaola has been refused his freedom only because of his close blood ties
\nwith Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, the petitioner added.<\/p>\n
The petitioner opined that “we are deeply concerned about the health of
\nMr. Azibaola Robert whose demeanour, countenance, co-ordination and
\ncognition are reported to have significantly changed; and such conditions
\naccording to his personal physician could be indicative of a systematic
\npoisoning with psychotropic\/psychoactive and other lethal drugs by EFCC
\noperatives”.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A cousin to former President Goodluck Jonathan, Barr. Azibaola Robert has petitioned the House of Representatives, protesting what he dubbed illegal detention by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":48628,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49027","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n