A former minister of Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory, Mr Nasir El Rufai, has honoured an invitation by the Department of State Security Service, DSS, to appear before it on Monday, in Abuja.
Mr El Rufai, who was accompanied to the DSS headquarters by his wife, Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State, Senator Chris Ngige, Representatives of the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties as well as the interim National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Mr Tijani Tumasah, described the arrest as being politically motivated.
“This is all about 2015. This is all an attempt to intimidate and silence the opposition against crying out that elections are likely to be rigged by the Peoples Democratic Party.”
However, El Rufai’s wife, Governor Amaechi and Senator Ngige were the only persons allowed in by the DSS.
Before he left for the DSS office, El Rufai told journalists at his Abuja residence that he would continue to speak up against all forms of injustice, electoral malpractices and acts of poor governance without fear or favour.
He noted that he never resisted arrest over the weekend but only demanded for a warrant of arrest before he could honour such invitation.
“All I asked for was a warrant of arrest because I believe that the DSS has no power to compel me to go to their office for a statement which I have rights under the constitution to make,” he said.
He added that his arrest may be as a result of his comments that the 2015 election may not be violence-free if the general elections were not free and fair.
He also said the arrest may have been “because I sued the SSS for detaining me unlawfully in Awka during the gubernatorial election. I think that’s the main reason but of course they have to find some other reason because there’s nothing I have said that history has not shown.”
“I said elections should be free and fair. If they are not free and fair, there’s likelihood of violence. This has happened at least four times in our history. In 1964, 1983, 1993 and 2011…anybody that doesn’t know that is either not reading history or just ignoring history.”
Governor Amaechi said he was accompanying El Rufai under instruction from the APC, insisting that none of them will be cowed by state intimidation.
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