The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria has condemned the actions of the Kogi State Police and the state governor, Usman Ododo, accusing them of political interference aimed at preventing Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan from visiting her family house and meeting with her constituents.
In a statement released on Tuesday, HURIWA’s National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, criticised the police for allegedly abandoning their constitutional duty of impartiality and instead serving the interests of the All Progressives Congress in Kogi State.
According to HURIWA, the Kogi State Police, acting under the directives of the state government, falsely cited security concerns as a reason for obstructing the senator’s visit.
“HURIWA is miffed that the Nigeria Police Force, which is a creation of the Nigerian Constitution that ought to work to advance the common good, has unfortunately become the official ‘attack dog’ and has further deteriorated to become the official ‘LAPDOG’ of the All Progressives Congress.
“The hierarchy of the Nigeria Police Force must as a matter of fact and as a matter of national importance and urgency, should and must take steps to shake off their parasitic attachment to the party that produced the current president of Nigeria and operate in compliance with the constitutional provisions and the Police Act of 2020 which necessarily mandates the Nigeria Police Force to become a professional, politically unaffiliated and patriotic organisation that serves the interest of all Nigerians and not that of the All Progressives Congress in such a way that they are deployed to embark on a political witch-hunt gambit and practically made to behave like the official vigilantes of All Progressives Congress,” the statement read.
HURIWA described the police action as a deliberate attempt to undermine Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan’s constitutional rights, including freedom of movement, peaceful assembly, and expression. The group called the incident an abuse of power and urged a thorough investigation into the conduct of the Kogi State Police and its commissioner.
“Why should the Kogi State police command follow sheepishly the political directive of the APC governor by abusing the police Act of 2020 and using illegal means through totally politically motivated and contrived reasons to attempt to stop Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan from exercising her constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights to freedom of movement, freedom of peaceful assembly, and freedom of information?
“This is a total deterioration of policing standards that must be confronted and the commissioner of police made to face investigation to provide evidence of security threats that he cited for attempting to carry out the partisan instructions of the All Progressives Congress to muzzle a citizen of Nigeria of her Human Rights?” the statement questioned.
HURIWA argued that the supposed security concerns were fabricated and part of a calculated effort by the APC to prevent the PDP senator from holding her planned rally, branding it as an undemocratic action.
The rights group reiterated its demand for an independent inquiry into the role of the police in the incident and warned against the continued politicisation of law enforcement agencies.
