Mr. Peter Obi, Labour Party Presidential candidate.
Human Rights group, International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law,
Intersociety has written a letter to the UK government asking it to guard against being perceived as an ally of "political office gangsterism and political banditry’ in Nigeria,” by speedily and thoroughly investigating the assault, harassment, and detention of Mr.Peter Obi by UK immigration officers at London Heathrow airport on 7th April 2023.
Intersociety further requested the British government to publish the findings of the probe at the end, "expeditiously and dispassionately act on them and also "publicly issue an unreserved apology to the person and families of Chief Peter Obi."
It also wants the UK authorities to ensure that forthwith, Mr. Obi is accorded the same level of security as other high-profile UK citizens or residents to avoid a repeat of such an incident.
The rights group argued that Peter Obi is deserving of high-level protection, " under the domestic and international watch of the UK Government," as he represents " the true and only hope for many if not most Nigerians."
The letter was signed by Intersociety
principal officers, Mr. Emeka Umeagbalasi, Chidinma Udegbunam Esquire, and Ositadinma Agu and addressed to
the UK Foreign Secretary, the Rt. Hon James Cleverly; the UK Minister of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Dev Office, the Rt. Hon Andrew Mitchell, the Co-Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Dev Office, the Rt. Hon Anne-Maria Trevelyan, the UK Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign, Commonwealth and Dev Office, the Rt. Hon David Rutley, the UK Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign, Commonwealth and Dev Office (2), the Rt. Hon Leo Docherty, the Lord Alton of Liverpool, David Patrick Paul Alton and Baroness Cox and Caroline Anne Cox.
Intersociety's Demands On The UK Government.
Intersociety wrote: “We at Nigeria’s Intersociety made an additional request that the findings of the investigations above demanded shall be expeditiously and dispassionately acted upon by the UK Government.
“Such findings must unmask the sources or suppliers of the false intelligence upon which the UK immigration officers unlawfully acted and that the feathers of those found culpable must be ruffled.
"The UK Government was further called upon to direct its High Commission/Commissioner in Nigeria too, at the end of the investigations and their findings, publicly issue an unreserved apology to the person and families of Chief Peter Obi and ensure that such despicable act does not repeat itself in future.
“The UK Airport immigration officers must
governmentally be called to order and prohibited from such despicable acts again.
"The respected UK Government should put a stop to such international macabre acts and avoid being widely perceived or labeled “an international ally of political office gangsterism and political banditry’ in Nigeria”.
“The danger of the UK Government refusing to do nothing and continuing to shield such international stigmatization, false labeling and criminalization of respected statesmen like Chief Peter Obi on UK soil and beyond is that internationally prohibited and illicit narcotics can be planted on UK soil in the luggage of Mr. Peter Obi or any of Nigeria’s few remaining moralists and democracy champions to demonize and discredit them at international borders.
“It must not be forgotten that Peter Obi is one of the minutest Nigerian elected public office holders being celebrated locally and internationally.
"This was as a result of his enviable “input and output legitimacies” (credible ascension to elective political office and outstanding achievements recorded) when he held sway as the presumed winner of the brutally manipulated 2003 Anambra Governorship Election and eventually the Court-reversed and returned Governor of Anambra State (17th March 2006 to 17th March 2014; eight years)” the letter read.
Obi's Luggage was Previously Turned Upside Down.
Professor Chinyere Okunna, a former aide to Mr. Peter Obi, the Labour Party presidential candidate in Nigeria's disputed February, 25 presidential election had alerted that Obi was detained for hours by British immigration officers at Heathrow Airport over duplicated identity.
The statement by Intersociety said, " Obi was arrested, embarrassed, assaulted, humiliated and detained for hours at London’s Heathrow International Airport by immigration officers acting on false intelligence possibly planted by Gestapo agents."
The rights group continued, " According to media reports, the false intelligence was internationally plotted and planted against Chief Peter Obi using an impostor to internationally discredit him as “a serial international financial criminal” involved in a series of financial crimes.
" As a result, Chief Peter Obi was not only held and embarrassed for hours but also his luggage and other personal items became objects of thorough search and were scattered into pieces and turned upside down.
"His person was also unlawfully put under caution or bodily restricted, arrested, and detained for hours before being let off the hook without remorse or apology.
Intersociety alleged that the Heathrow incident was not the first such assault on Obi who surprisingly had long been resident in the UK, " a lawful businessman, taxpayer, and employer of labor for over 20 years."
The statement said, "As recently as months gone by in 2022, Chief Peter Obi was surprisingly accosted by the same UK Immigration officers at a UK Airport and sniff-dogs and immigration search officers were let loose on him, claiming that “there was a shared intelligence from Nigerian Government that he (Peter Obi) was moving millions of British Pounds into the UK as an international money launderer through an accomplice that traveled with him”.
"Not only that his luggage was scattered and torn to shreds, but also his wife was bombarded with interrogative phone calls from the UK immigration officers. Hours after the embarrassment drama, the captor UK immigration officers found nothing incriminating on Chief Peter Obi and he was allowed to go."
Intersociety further claimed that in the recent past, the Labour Party presidential candidate also locally experienced "trauma, embarrassment, degradation", and various forms of assault on his person and businesses from agents of the government as well as political opponents.
The group warned that the UK and international community may find it very difficult to contain the humanitarian crisis that may result " if anything untoward happens to his life and dignity of the human person."
No apology from the British government over Obi's detention – Onifade.
Early reports following Obi's detention at London Heathrow Airport claimed that the British government apologized to Peter Obi over the incident.
However, in a swift reaction, the Obi-Datti Presidential Campaign Council refuted the claim, saying it was not aware of such an apology.
A statement by the head of the Campaign Council, Diran Onifade said, “We have been receiving inquiries with regards to a so-called apology, purportedly issued by the British Government or any of its agencies, to our Principal Mr. Peter Obi, in respect of a routine Immigration engagement with him, as he arrived London, for a brief visit, last Friday, the 7th of April.
“We would like to state emphatically that we are not aware of any such apology, and have not issued any statement whatsoever, in that regard.
“While we continue to examine any dubious or political motive, on the part of the perpetrators of the identity theft,
we have every confidence in the ability of the British authorities to resolve the matter to its conclusion.
"Mr. Peter Obi and the LP/PCC have since moved on from the incident and continue to be focused on the legal processes before the Election Petition Tribunal towards the recovery of our mandate, which we are firmly convinced was overwhelmingly expressed by voters, in the Presidential election of February 25th,” Onifade stated.
Daniel Bwala, spokesperson of the Atiku Abubakar presidential campaign made a post on Twitter claiming that the British government apologized to Obi over his detention at Heathrow Airport.
Bwala wrote, “British government apologized to Peter Obi for illegally serving him a detention note.
“Can you now put a ‘respek’ on his name? We are now waiting for the US government to apologize to Tinubu for illegally collecting the forfeited dollars.
“Asiwaju fans oya start throwing the insults.”
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