TheCable

John Nwodo, president general of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has described the siege laid to the residence of Ike Ekweremadu, deputy senate president, as a bad omen for the country.

In a statement on Tuesday, Nwodo said while he would not begrudge the state for doing its statutory duty, it must be within the confines of rule of law.

He noted that Ekweremadu, being the highest Igbo person in government, is much cherished by his people and it is expected that he should be accorded all the respect deserving of his position.

He said Ndigbo would not take kindly to any action intended to “harass, intimidate or arrest Igbo leaders” without following the due process of the law.

“In a democratic setting as ours, we expect security agencies to be civil and work within the rule of the law without breaching the civil liberty of any individual,” he said.

“We will not want to be sentimental into believing that there are grand design to silent and humiliate Igbo leaders at the national level who are legitimately representing their people very well but whose stance on issues is not agreeable with the ruling authorities.

“If the deputy senate breached any law he should be taken to court not put under house arrest. This certainly is a bad omen for our country.”

He recalled that Enyinna Abaribe, senator representing Abia south, was incarcerated for three days “without any tangible reason” disclosed to Nigerians till date.

He added that it would do the nation’s democracy no good “if people’s liberties are continuously being curtailed by an intolerant system”.