The #BringBackOurGirls protesters in Abuja pressuring the federal government to expedite the rescue of the abducted Chibok girls are filing a suit in court on Tuesday to challenge Monday’s ban of their protest by commissioner of police in the city, Mbu Joseph Mbu.
The group, which has been organising sit-ins and marches to key government actors over the last 34 days, was banned from further convening to “forestall breakdown of law and order”.
“We wish to remind the commissioner of police, Mbu, that he cannot take any action that violates our constitutionally-guaranteed rights as citizens, particularly our rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association, amongst others, as enshrined in Chapter Four (Section 40) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria (as amended),” leaders of the group, Obiageli Ezekwesili and Hadiza Bala Usman, wrote in a statement.
“We are puzzled about the inconsistencies in the communication emanating from the Nigerian Police. We recall that on May 12, 2014, the Nigeria Police Force on its website published a news item with the title: ‘Police Not Against Peaceful Assemblies, in which the inspector-general of police, M.D. Abubakar restated the commitment of the Nigeria Police Force to the protection and enforcement of the fundamental rights of citizens.”
Advertisement
They recalled that the group had been widely acknowledged — by even the police and the federal government delegation that represented President Goodluck Jonathan at a meeting — as a peaceful, disciplined, and decorous team.
“In consonance with our approach, we shall today be in court with our lawyer, Femi Falana SAN to file a suit challenging this purported ban by C.P. Mbu,” they said.
“In the interim, we shall not hold our sit-out tomorrow June 3, 2014, because we shall be accompanying our lawyers to the court, where we hope to obtain an immediate restraint on this unconstitutional, undemocratic and repressive act.”
Advertisement
They maintained that their movement is “legitimate and lawful”, so it cannot be arrested by the police, whose responsibility is to enforce, not betray the law.
“We, the members of the #BringBackOurGirls Abuja Family, remain resolute and will persist in using all lawful means to sustain our peaceful advocacy for the safe rescue of the Chibok Girls,” they added, before urging “all those in Nigeria and other nations that have similarly taken a stand for the cause of the girls to continue to do so with the clarion call: BRING BACK OUR GIRLS, NOW AND ALIVE!!!”
