TheCable

Abubakar Sidiq, a blogger, says having fought for the emergence of the present government, he ought not to have been “unconstitutionally” detained by the nation’s leading anti-graft agency.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) recently arrested and detained Sidiq for over 24 hours.

Following his release, the blogger vowed to use all legal and constitutional means to prevent a recurrence of the situation.

The blogger, who was picked up in his home at Kubwa, Abuja on Monday, also promised to make public the reason(s) for his arrest in due time.

“I would like to thank my family, my friends, my legal team, the members of the All Progressives Congress Youth Forum (APYF), political parties, members of the Nigerian online community irrespective of their affiliations, and hundreds of thousands of Nigerians who in one way or another spoke out against my unconstitutional detention by the EFCC,” he said in a statement.

“Your tweets, posts, and demands for the constitutionally guaranteed right to freedom of speech led to my release and the victory that we have achieved today.

“This experience has stirred up broader conversations on the roles of our statutory established institutions, the parameters of our laws, and our civil liberties as citizens of our great Federal Republic.

“Moving forward, I will be pursuing all legal and constitutionally established avenues to ensure that this does not repeat itself. This is a government that I fought for. But occurrences like these are not the experiences that myself and millions of Nigerians have fought for.

“I hope that we can use this to rectify the wrongs in our system towards the attainment of a more sustainable democracy. The reason(s) for my arrest will be made know to you all.”

In reaction to the public outcry and criticism that trailed his arrest, the EFCC had alleged that Sidiq was being questioned for offences bordering on cyber stalking.