Treatment of Sowore by IGP Monitoring Team shameful – Atiku

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has strongly criticised the Nigeria Police Force following reports of the alleged assault on activist and SaharaReporters publisher, Omoyele Sowore.

PlatinumPost reports that Sowore reportedly sustained a hand injury on Thursday morning after being allegedly assaulted by personnel attached to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Monitoring Team.

In a statement reacting to the incident, Atiku, who was the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general election, described the police action as disgraceful.

“The treatment of Omoyele Sowore by the IGP Monitoring Team is a shameful abuse of power. It is wrong, unlawful, and must be condemned by all who believe in justice,” Atiku said.

“Sowore’s only offence is speaking out against injustice, nepotism, and misrule. For that, he was reportedly attacked at dawn, beaten, had his arm broken, and sprayed with chemicals by policemen acting on petitions from the IGP’s own office.
“This is personal vendetta, not policing.”

He further cited the Nigeria Police Regulation, arguing that the law prohibits such actions from officers. “Even the Nigeria Police Regulation forbids this. Regulation 367 states: ‘No police officer shall institute any legal proceeding in his own personal interest or in connection with matters arising out of his public duties.’

“The IGP cannot be a complainant and still deploy the force to carry out his grievance,” he added.

Atiku also warned that the implications of such actions go beyond Sowore alone, calling it an attack on every citizen who chooses to challenge those in authority.

“This is not about Sowore alone, it is an attack on every Nigerian who dares to speak truth to power. This must stop. And Sowore should be released immediately, and unconditionally, too.”

Sowore, a vocal critic of the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, was reportedly arrested on Tuesday in connection with an alleged forgery case after he responded to a police summons.