By David Owei,Bayelsa

A human rights group under the auspices of the Centre for Justice and Equity (CJE) has called for the immediate release of four aides to former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, arrested by security agencies.

Citing serious concerns over human rights, due process, the CJE lamented the continued uncertainty surrounding their detention.

The group in a statement signed by Chief Igoni Williams, said they were concerned that the aides had remained in detention since 25 October 2025, following a raid on the Maitama residence of the former minister.

CJE listed the aides arrested as Paganengigha Anagha, younger brother and domestic aide to Timipre Sylva; Musa Mohammed, driver to Sylva; Ayuba Reuben, plainclothes police detail and Friday Lusa Paul, escort driver to Sylva.

The group said more than five months after their arrest, no clear or publicly known charges had been formally presented against them, raising troubling questions about adherence to due process and the protection of fundamental rights.

The group also noted disturbing reports regarding the declining health and wellbeing of the detainees, allegedly resulting from poor detention conditions and prolonged psychological strain.

The statement highlighted the severe emotional and economic pressures placed upon their wives, children, relatives, friends, and neighbours, who according to the group had been left in a painful state of uncertainty.

The centre said the constant adjournments of court proceedings on the matter was also troubling describing the development as suspicious and inconsistent with the principles of transparent justice.

The group said: “Justice delayed under such circumstances raises legitimate fears of injustice. If there are legitimate allegations against these men, they should be clearly and openly charged before the law. If not, they should be released immediately to reunite with their families and rebuild their lives.”

The centre further urged Nigerians, civil society organisations, and defenders of civil liberties to lend their voices to the cause of justice by demanding transparency and fairness in the handling of the case.

“We call on Nigerians everywhere to amplify this call for justice. Public awareness and lawful civic pressure remain essential tools in defending the rights of citizens”, CJE said.

The organisation announced that it would continue to monitor the proceedings closely and advocate relentlessly until justice was served, appealing to all stakeholders to help in drawing people’s attention to the detainees’ plight.

CJE said it had launched the #FreeTheSylva4 saying: “Justice must not only be done; it must also be seen to be done. These men deserve clarity, fairness, and the full protection of the law.”

By Our Correspondent

Ireked by poor power supply in parts of Osun state, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Southwest Zone D, staged a protest in Osogbo, Osun State, on Wednesday, decrying the epileptic power supply affecting campuses and student communities.

The visibly angry students who converged under the November 27 Bridge marched through Ogoluwa, Olaiya flyover, MDS, and to the IBEDC Office at Station Road.

The protesters were seen carrying placards with inscriptions like “Restore Our Power Infrastructure In Southwest”, “No More Darkness In Our Campuses & Communities” among others.

Addressing journalists on the sidelines of the protest the coordinator of the association, Adeyemo Josiah, called on the federal government to swiftly swing into action and eradicate the persistent blackouts in the state.

He said, “We are here today to register our voices, our displeasure in the current electricity crisis that we are facing nationwide. In recent times before now, we have addressed this issue in several press conferences, where we explained the issues our students are facing in our campuses, in our society regarding electricity.

“You cannot expect our students to thrive where there is darkness, you cannot deny the fact that electricity is one of the basic needs that students need to have a successful activities in their activities, since we have this Press conferences and there have been no result, either the Federal Government Ministry of Power, or any other parastatals that is concerned, we have decided to come here on the street to register our concerns to let the whole world know that we are agitating not just for ourselves but the whole society and Nigeria as a whole.

“We know where to go if we want to make a magnanimous protest, Osogbo is not the headquarters of IBEDC we know where to go, we are registering our voices to let them know that if our concerns are not noted we will be forced to take our massive protest and we will not step down until they listen to us.

“To the Power Minister while we cannot do his job for him, he has been appointed as the minister for power, it is his responsibility to ensure that we enjoy stable electricity in the country, if there are issues that the whole world should know, then he should come out to address us, we have written letters to him and we are expecting feedback, but if we hear nothing, he should know that we will not hesitate to come against him in mass, and we would register our voice to Mr President and even to all other government parastatals that Adelabu has not done us well.”

By George Mgbeleke

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has described as grave violation of fundamental human rights, the continued detention of one of its party leaders and former governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasiru El-Rufai, who has been held in ICPC custody for over 30 days.

In a strongly worded statement signed by by party’s Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC described the detention as illegal and unconstitutional, alleging attempts to coerce El-Rufai into abandoning his political choice, and called on the ICPC to uphold the rule of law by immediately releasing El-Rufai from custody to enable him to prepare his own defence.

The party maintained that detaining a citizen interminably is the hallmark of dictatorship and has no place in a democracy. It therefore vowed to petition the Amnesty International and other human rights groups if El-Rufai is not released immediately.

The full statement read:

“The African Democratic Congress declares that the continued violation of the fundamental rights of Mallam Nasiru El-Rufai is a stain on the conscience of our democracy and a dangerous descent into lawlessness by the Bola Tinubu-led government.

“Thirty-two days ago, the former Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasiru El-Rufai, honoured an invitation by the EFCC in good faith, an act that should define a law-abiding citizen in a democratic society. Two days after his release, he was taken again, this time by the ICPC. Today, more than 30 days later, he remains in custody without arraignment, without formal charges, and under conditions that, by his own account include, restrictions from his family members and doctor; and coercion to abandon his political rights and associations as the price for his freedom.

“Let us be clear, this is not law enforcement. This is the weaponisation of state institutions against political participation. It is illegal. It is unconstitutional. It is an affront to the very idea of Nigeria as a democratic country.

“Freedom is not a privilege that is granted at the pleasure of the executive branch. It is a right that is guaranteed by the Constitution. The right to liberty. The right to fair hearing. The right to political participation. These are not negotiable. They are not conditional. And they are not to be negotiated in dark rooms under threat by agencies that report to President Tinubu and his appointees.

“We must speak plainly, a government that detains without charge, intimidates without evidence, and demands silence in exchange for freedom is not acting like a democratic government, it is behaving like something else entirely.”

The statement further cautioned,”If President Bola Tinubu intends to govern as though the Constitution is optional, then he owes Nigerians the honesty to say so openly. He must declare, without pretence, that the rules of democracy no longer apply. And if that is the path that he chooses, then Nigerians, citizens, institutions, the international community, and the opposition, will know that what stands before us is not democracy, but a dictatorship in disguise.

“But if President Tinubu still claims allegiance to the rule of law, then we challenge him to prove it in action.
In this regard, the ADC therefore demands the immediate and unconditional compliance of all relevant state actors with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This includes the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, the leadership of the ICPC, and all agencies involved in this matter.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the ICPC, was established to investigate and prosecute corruption and to strengthen the public’s trust in governance, not to serve as an instrument of political suppression or a tool in partisan political battles. Nigeria did not fight for democracy only to surrender it quietly through fear, silence, or selective justice.

“Nevertheless, as a law-abiding party, today, the ADC calls on all Nigerians, across party lines, across states, across religions, to rise in defence of the Constitution. Today it is El-Rufai. Tomorrow, it could be anyone else that the president sees as a threat to his 2027 agenda. The erosion of rights rarely begins with everyone, it begins with one, and spreads where and when silence permits it.

“We demand the immediate release of Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, or his immediate arraignment in a court of competent jurisdiction. Nothing more. Nothing less. That is the law. And let it be said clearly, if this is the democratic character of a government that is seeking another mandate from the Nigerian people, then Nigerians must ask themselves, what becomes of the rule of law and human rights when the Tinubu government no longer needs their votes?

“It is a profound irony, and indeed a shame, that a president who once stood as a self-proclaimed democrat, who claimed to have fought alongside NADECO against military dictatorship, now presides over actions that mirror the very abuses that NADECO resisted.”