The Briton accused of inciting insurrection against President Bola Tinubu’s government, Drew Povey, has urged the Nigerian government not to treat protests as treason.
In a statement, Povey said: “PROTEST IS NOT TREASON – release all the detainees! The mass protests over #EndBadGovernance and #EndHunger frightened the government. But rather than addressing the peoples’ demands, the government turned to repression.”
Povey’s bookshop, located at the Abuja headquarters of the Nigeria Labour Congress, had earlier been raided and sealed. He was accused of enabling some #EndBadGovernance protesters “with intent to destabilize Nigeria.”
In his statement, Povey continued: “Perhaps 40 people were murdered by the police and other security forces, thousands were arrested and many still remain in captivity. In Abuja, the authorities have attacked the so-called leaders and organisers of the protests. Ten people face ridiculous charges including treason, mutiny and levying war against the state.”
He also mentioned the case of Eleojo Opaluwa, who was arrested and detained for over four weeks without tangible evidence.
Povey stated: “His family was told that he had received a WhatsApp message from one of the other alleged leaders. This was after Eleojo had actually been detained.”
Povey further alleged that the detainees were accused of conspiracy to commit serious crimes, but they barely know each other.
He said: “Five of them may have been members of a WhatsApp group set up to organise the protests in Abuja. But the other five are unknown to these comrades.”
He also mentioned the conflict between the government and the police investigating the case, stating: “The head of the Intelligence Response Team told the detainees’ lawyers that he would have released them, but that he had orders from above not to set them free.”
Povey concluded his statement by highlighting the inhumane treatment of the detainees, including Yomi, who works for Iva Valley Books.
He said: “He was arrested in front of his wife and three-year old daughter. All their phones were confiscated by the police. This was despite appeals from his wife that they needed a phone to get money for food. He was then imprisoned illegally and held in chains, beaten and tortured for three days. His only involvement was to design flyers for the protests on the instructions of his boss.”
