A lawyer, Nurudeen Abdulsalam, has accused the Kwara State Police Command of making an attempt to intimidate him after he publicly accused Lieutenant-Colonel Nurudeen Yusuf, the aide-de-camp to President Bola Tinubu and the Elemona of Ilemona, of abuse of energy and selling land grabbing by his neighborhood.
The lawyer is from Offa, a neighbouring neighborhood to Ilemona in Kwara State. The two communities, respectively the headquarters of Offa and Oyun LGAs, have a historical past of land disputes.
Mr Abdulsalam, who chairs the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Gwagwalada Branch, Abuja, mentioned about 10 police officers had been deployed from Kwara State to Abuja to arrest him following his criticism in opposition to the standard ruler.
In a press release dated 3 November, the lawyer mentioned he acquired a cellphone name at about 11:55 a.m. from an individual who recognized himself as an officer on the Kwara State Police Headquarters.
He mentioned the caller advised him a police staff had arrived in Abuja and was stationed on the Gwagwalada Police Division for investigation, and requested him to report instantly.
Mr Abdulsalam alleged that the officers had been performing on the directives of the Kwara State Commissioner of Police, with the FCT Commissioner of Police additionally anticipated to help in his arrest.
He mentioned he requested a proper invitation from the police in the event that they required his presence for an investigation.
“I have neither fled nor gone into hiding,” he mentioned.
The lawyer described the alleged deployment of police officers throughout state strains as an try and intimidate him over a personal dispute involving Mr Yusuf.
He additionally alleged that public sources and safety personnel had been being diverted to guard the standard ruler’s pursuits whereas communities in Kwara continued to face insecurity.
PREMIUM TIMES couldn’t independently confirm the lawyer’s allegations in regards to the police deployment or the circumstances surrounding the reported cellphone name.
Earlier allegations
The newest allegations comply with an open letter Mr Abdulsalam issued on 27 October, titled A Call Against Impunity: The Overreach of the ADC to the President, Elemona of Ilemona Community of Kwara State.
In the letter, he accused Mr Yusuf of utilizing his navy place, royal standing and political connections to exert affect over land disputes involving Ilemona and neighbouring communities, notably Offa and Ira.
He alleged that armed youths from Ilemona had been seizing land and intimidating residents, with the police and judiciary allegedly getting used to harass individuals who resisted the actions.
Mr Abdulsalam cited the case of a person he recognized as Gani Agidingbadi, whom he mentioned was arrested whereas engaged on his farmland in Alaya and brought to Ilemona over a disputed land possession declare.
He alleged that the person was subsequently charged with unlawful possession of a firearm and remained in detention.
In his 3 November assertion, nevertheless, Mr Abdulsalam referred to a different resident, Suwara Agindingbadi, whom he mentioned remained in custody on what he described as fabricated prices.
The lawyer additionally alleged that Offa youths, together with Kamal Lawal and Taye Lateef, had been assaulted over land disputes and accused the authorities of failing to handle the matter successfully.
He additional claimed {that a} decide had advised victims in open courtroom to go and beg Mr Yusuf. The lawyer didn’t present particulars of the courtroom proceedings or determine the decide within the assertion.
Calls for investigation
Mr Abdulsalam mentioned the most recent incident bolstered his earlier allegations that state establishments had been being deployed to settle personal disputes involving the standard ruler.
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He described the alleged police motion as an abuse of government energy and mentioned he would proceed to demand accountability.
“As a legal practitioner and a Branch Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), I will not be cowed by gunboat tactics or the unconstitutional misuse of executive power,” he mentioned.
Mr Abdulsalam signed the assertion because the founding accomplice of Lawgem LP and chairman of the NBA Gwagwalada Branch.
Efforts by PREMIUM TIMES to achieve the Kwara State Police Command spokesperson, Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi, for feedback on the allegations had been unsuccessful, as her phone quantity was unreachable on the time of submitting this report.
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