Services have been feeding the 12 aides of the Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo, aka Sunday Igboho, with a soup known as “engine oil”, counsel for the detained persons, Pelumi Olajengbesi, has alleged.
The lawyer, who said he was at the DSS headquarters in Abuja on Friday after over four weeks of not being allowed to meet with his clients, said the detained persons began purging after eating the soup with fufu or eba.
Efforts to get the reaction of the DSS spokesman, Peter Afunaya, on the allegation by the lawyer proved abortive as he neither took calls put across to his line by one of our correspondents nor replied to a text message sent to his phone as of the time of filing this report.
In his update sent to Saturday PUNCH on Friday, Olajengbesi said he and two other members of the legal team met with four of the 12 detained persons on Friday.
He said, “It is important to state that their current situation is a classical definition of wholesome human rights abuse. Their health is sadly poor and in a sorry situation.
“They are made to sleep on the bare floor and are badly beaten before medical treatment is accorded them to heal and conceal injuries from the torture.
“Lady K, in particular, seems to have sustained fracture on her left leg and is in serious pains. She has not had a change of clothes and folds herself to sleep in the terrible cell.
“Some of them have high blood pressure as confirmed by the DSS clinic. They are fed with a liquid they call ‘engine oil’ as soup for their food. Their normal routine is to eat and resume the toilet where they purge for long.
“Suffice to say, they’re being treated badly and worse than animals, but we did our best in assuring and keeping them upbeat and in high spirits before making our exit.”
The PUNCH had earlier reported that the 12 persons were arrested on July 1, 2021 during a midnight raid on the Ibadan residence of Igboho.
The secret police had said its operatives killed two other associates of Igboho in a “gun duel” during the raid.
The detained persons through their lawyers subsequently approached a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja to demand their release.
The court had on Thursday adjourned the suit till Monday because the DSS failed to produce the detained persons as earlier ordered by the court.
Meanwhile, the Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Adams, on Friday flayed the DSS for failing to produce the 12 associates of Igboho in the Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday.
He said, “Our constitution is clear about the rights of every citizen that anybody arrested must be taken to court at the latest 24 hours after arrest and such rights must be protected under the law. It is sad and most unfortunate that the DSS had arrogated to itself covert powers that usually remind us of the inglorious years of the military where citizens rights had no basis in their law.
“Therefore, the DSS’ failure to produce Igboho’s aides in court for the second time was a flagrant display of lawlessness and gross injustice. Ideally, it is only the president and the vice president of the country that have immunity as provided by our constitution. So why is the DSS finding it too difficult to allow the constitution to take its course as it is done in other climes?’’
