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PROSCRIPTION: Shi’ites to receive IPOB treatment – Presidency
Members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, otherwise known as Shi’ites, may be in for a raw deal in the hands of law enforcement agencies in the country, as the Presidency said on Monday that their activities will be handled the same way the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, was handled.
According to the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, security agencies have the power to take any necessary action against the group as was done to members of IPOB led by Nnamdi Kanu.
Shehu said this on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme on Monday.
“In Kaduna, it (proscription) worked; these troublesome people were chased out of the state. They no longer have a foothold there. They moved over to Abuja and that is why we have them here. It (court order) will be enforced.
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“What that means is that the law enforcement agencies in the country have the right to take whatever steps necessary to deal with their activities”, he said.
Asked what would happen if members of IMN decide to stage another protest, Shehu said they would not be allowed.
“My advice is that they better not do that. It won’t be allowed. They are not allowed to protest anymore”, he added.
Speaking further, the presidential spokesman explained that the issue of bail for the leader of IMN, Sheikh Ibraheem El-Zakzaky, is a complicated one.
According to him, El-Zakzaky was granted bail on just one of the matters he was being held for but was not granted bail on other matters.
Faulting the statement of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, condemning the proscription, Shehu argued that it was not the freedom of worship that was curtailed but the freedom to protest.
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