The Coalition for Peace in Nigeria (COPIN) has issued a plea to individuals and groups, urging them to respect the authority of government institutions in carrying out their responsibilities. The organization emphasizes that no one should be exempt from accountability in the country.
The civil society organization (CSO) issued this warning in response to the interference of certain lawyers in the case involving the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele.
Previously, some lawyers had taken legal action in a Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, claiming to initiate committal proceedings against the Director General of the Department of State Services (DG SS), Alh. Yusuf Magaji Bichi.
In a statement released on Tuesday and signed by Pharm. Emeka Akwuobi, the National Coordinator of COPIN, the group appeals to the public to disregard the actions of these lawyers, whom they describe as “busybodies and meddlesome interlopers,” clearly acting on someone else’s behalf.
The coalition acknowledges that the Department of State Services (DSS) has filed a two-count criminal charge against the suspended central banker. They call upon all well-intentioned individuals to respect the judicial process and allow it to proceed without interference.
Furthermore, COPIN advises the DSS not to yield to any form of blackmail, emphasizing that individuals and groups suspected of violating the law should be held accountable for their alleged offenses, regardless of their influence or power.
“We are constrained to rise in defence of the DSS and its indefatigable DG, Alh. YM Bichi, not for any pecuniary gain, but to alert the unwary public to the activities of some lawyers, which we consider to be self-serving in nature.
“As a responsible and patriotic group, we will not watch idly while some persons/groups wage needless ‘demolition campaigns’ against highly-regarded institutions and their heads, for a mess of pottage.
“We wonder why these people are calling for the release of a suspect, whom criminal charges have already been preferred against before a court of competent jurisdiction.
“Apart from the pending charge, we are aware that a court of record earlier refused to grant an Order setting aside his arrest and detention of Emefiele by the Service;
“Further investigation revealed that the court also declined to make another order setting aside the detention order obtained by the Secret Service, as well as an Injunction restraining the Body from further arresting and detaining him.
“We note that, having regard to the expiration of the detention order on 10th July, 2023, the court had, ordered the Service to arraign the accused person within 48 hours, or release him on bail”, COPIN said in the statement.
In conclusion, the CSO charged Nigeria “to support security and law-enforcement agencies in the country in the discharge of their duties, in order to entrench probity and accountability in the nation’s governance process”.