The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, has said that President Muhammadu Buhari’s Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu should be arrested
Acccording to the body, Shehu should be apprehended for allegedly inciting violence against Matthew Kukah, the Bishop of Sokoto Catholic Archdiocese.
The group alleged that Shehu’s statement was a direct incitement of violence against Kukah.
The group said it is suprised why the security agencies have not arrested Shehu for the direct threat on the life of Bishop Kukah,
A statement by the National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko and the National Media affairs Director Miss Zainab Yusuf said perpetrators of violence should no longer be pampered.
The statement reads: “It was inconceivable that a Presidential spokesman can descend to the arena of religious extremism by ascribing wrong meanings and interpretation to statement made by the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese.
“Why is the Spokesperson of the Nigerian President directly asserting that the constructive criticism of some bad policies of the Federal government as made in the exercise of his fundamental Human Rights by Bishop Kukah, amounts to an insult against a respected Islamic religion, Is Garba Shehu implying that President Muhammedu Buhari is the chief Imam of Nigeria or is he above criticism?
“The irrational, insensitive, senseless and pathetic statement in the media credited to Garba Shehu amounts to a call on religious fundamentalists to attack the person of Bishop Bukah and this is definitely a clear incitement to violence which should attract the attention of security services unless these security services have also been transformed into Islamic religious security forces. We call on the relevant heads of the security forces to immediately arrest, investigate and prosecute Garba Shehu and one professor Maishanu inter-religious conflicts in Nigeria”.
