Third Force Movement of Nigeria under the umbrella of Nigeria Intervention Movement, (NIM) has condemned the arrest of the Presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) in the 2019 general election, Omoyele Sowore by the Department of State Service (DSS) over his active role in the planned nationwide protests against bad governance.
NIM in a statement issued on Saturday by its Publicity Secretary Olusegun Obe demanded immediate release of Sowore even as it reaffirmed its commitment to the planned nationwide mass protests against bad political system and malgovernance in Nigeria tagged “#Revolution Now!” starting on Monday, 5th August 2019.
The statement noted that the historic nationwide ‘Revolutionary Action’ initiated by Nigerian masses and youths under the banner of Coalition For Revolution, CORE is purely aimed at overthrowing the corrupt and warped political system being operated by the country as well as changing the oppressive ruling class in Nigeria.
“Therefore, we have directed all our members, allies and supporters in the Third Force Movement, especially of the Nigeria Intervention Movement, NIM, Alliance for Defence of Democracy (ADD) and some revolutionary political parties to join and support the historic mass action for a New Nigeria as already endorsed by icons like Prof. Wole Soyinka, Alhaji Balarabe Musa, Oby Ezekwesili among others,” the statement said.
NIM added that it is for this reason that pro-democracy activists condemn in “unequivocal stance the subversive arrest and detention of one of the key Facilitators of #Revolution Now!, Sowore Omoyele; the Leader of the Take It Back Movement, TIB, who was forcefully abducted in his home at about 1.25 am today, Saturday and whisked away to an unknown destination.
“We hereby demand from the Nigerian Presidency and its witch hunting Department of State Security, DSS apparatus, the immediate release of Omoyele Sowore, as his continued incarceration will not deter our forces and Cadres from embarking on the planned mass action against the oppressors of the Nigerian peoples on Monday as earlier scheduled
“Finally, we wish to state strongly that peaceful protest or public demonstration against State or government policies is a Constitutional right of every citizen of Nigeria and so, it is illegal to criminalise or victimise any Citizen of Nigeria for openly expressing contrary stand against government’s policies and programme as currently being done by the Nigerian Presidency against the Monday mass protests of the Nigerian peoples,” the statement added.
Innocent Odoh, Abuja
