Continued detention: Blogger slams N500m suits against el-Rufai, IGP, others

A blogger and human rights activists, Steven Kefas, currently in Kaduna Prison, has filed a N500m suit against the Kaduna State Governor, Nasir el-Rufai, the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, and four others for alleged infringement of his fundamental human rights.

Kefas, as of Friday, had spent 144 days in prison without bail, for allegedly inciting comments against el-Rufai.

However, on Thursday, the activist approached the Federal High Court in Kaduna via his counsel, Gloria Ballason.

In the suit, he said his fundamental human rights had been breached by six respondents listed in the following order: (1) Cafra Caino, Chairman, Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State; (2) Aisha Dikko, Special Adviser on Legal Affairs to Kaduna State Governor; (3) el-Rufai; (4) the Attorney General of Kaduna State; (5) the Kaduna State Commissioner of Police; and (6) the Inspector-General of Police.

In the suit dated October 10, 2019 with number FHC/KD/62/19, Kefas asked the court to make 15 declarations which included: “The arrest and detention of the applicant by the 5th and 6th respondents’ facility on trumped-up charges is an extrajudicial arrest for which the applicant is suffering a physical and psychological torture and violates Article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“The unlawful arrest and the dehumanising manner the applicant was conveyed by agents of the 5th and 6th respondents from office to the police command and introducing him as the ‘notorious wanted person that was picked from Port Harcourt’ was degrading and affected his proper feeling of esteem and inherent dignity and violates Section 34 of the 1999 CFRN; Article 5 of the African Charter on Human Rights; articles 9, 13 & 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; and Article 7 & 9 of the ICCPR.” Punch