By Desire Emmanuel
The African Action Congress (AAC), a party founded by the activist, Omoyele Sowore, is heading for a showdown with the Lagos State Police Command as it told the command that it should desist from being a political tool to oppress the citizens.
It will be recalled that the state police command had warned Sowore and urged him and his cohorts against holding any protest or demonstration over the demolition of various structures at the Oworonshoki area of the state.
This followed information received by the command of plan by some groups of protesters to block the Oworonshoki end of the Third Mainland Bridge on Monday morning, which made the command to deploy its officers to the area.
However, while reacting to the police warning, the Lagos State chapter of the party warned the command to desist from being a tool in the hands of the oppressors, saying the people have the right to protest over the demolition of their properties.
According to the statement signed by Adetayo Babatunde Daniel, its Publicity Secretary, the state police command should respect the rights of the citizens.
The statement reads: “AAC Lagos condemns police commissioner’s threats against peaceful protest, we see it as an affront to the democratic tenet and attempt to suppress rights to expression and peaceful assembly
“We African Action Congress (AAC) Lagos State chapter are outraged by the recent statement made by the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Olorundare, warning citizens against peaceful protest. We view this as a brazen attempt to intimidate and suppress the rights of Lagosians to express their grievances against the government.
“The commissioner even went further to conclude that victims of demolition are all criminals or harbouring criminals. This statement is clueless and wicked. Can Mr Jimoh point us to the crimes committed by victims of demolition, who is investigating it and where are the criminals? He also stated that the government has given some residents compensation, why should that statement be coming from a commissioner of police like he is part of the APC government?
“The real people affected by the illegal demolition has stated clearly that they are not interested in N500,000 compensation organized by the Oba Of Oworonshoki and some people in government.
“The AAC believes that the Commissioner of Police has overstepped his bounds and is acting in connivance with the government to oppress the people. It is the duty of the police to protect citizens’ rights to peaceful assembly and free speech, not to threaten and intimidate them.
“We reject the Commissioner’s warning and assert that citizens have a constitutional right to protest and express their displeasure against the government. The police should not be used as a tool to suppress dissenting voices and stifle democratic expression.
“The AAC demands that the Commissioner of Police retract his statement and respect the rights of citizens to peaceful protest. We call on the Lagos State government to respect the rule of law and allow citizens to exercise their fundamental rights without fear of intimidation or harassment.
“We therefore call for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr Omoyele Sowore or else we will take the barricade to the Lagos State police command and all other states in the country.
“We urge Lagosians to remain vigilant and continue to demand accountability and transparency from their government. The AAC will not be silenced or intimidated and we will continue to stand with the people and fight for their rights.”
