Although the federal government has finally responded to the global outrage that followed the recent court invasion in the bid to re-arrest Mr. Omoyele Sowore, a former presidential candidate and publisher of Sahara Reporters, an online newspaper, interrogating how Nigeria arrived at that juncture is equally important.
It is disturbing that in the thick of needless desperation, the federal government and its agencies could not manage Sowore and either by omission or commission, naively lionised a man, who could barely muster 20 thousand votes at the poll but has now become a major crisis on their hands. Sowore now gets mentioned in foreign media almost on a daily basis, so much that United States senators and congress members openly advance his cause.
While Sowore’s poor treatment and alleged inhuman handling raise suspicion about the standpoint of the government, allegation that the president, General Muhamadu Buhari, was not aware of the actions of the DSS raises a much bigger worry. It’s a worry about control and leadership, which should stimulate agitations about the state of the nation.
There have also been theories about why Sowore might have become a person of interest to the security agents as propounded by the presidency. But this is beyond the fact that he called for revolution. There’s definitely more that neither Sowore nor the state agents are saying, which of course has further hardened him.
He is in a place now, where nothing more can further break him.
This is why security must be circumspect in their handling of him. They mismanaged the whole situation ab initio, lionised him and now, they require wisdom going forward, particularly, by showing respect for the rule of law. And with the case now taken over by the AGF, perhaps, Nigerians will begin to see some sanity in its handling.
