Ban on Boko Haram.
WE Will go to Court If Their Rights
Are Infringed – Ango Abdullahi.
**their freedom of association,
freedom of speech, freedom of
propagating religious beliefs will
be infringed.
**we thought govt should
concentrate on what they were
doing and watch where Boko
Haram members will emerge and
engage in discussion and dialogue
so that these crises could come to
an end.
The Northern Elders Forum (NEF)
has been angered by the decision
of President Goodluck Jonathan to
Ban the activities of the Islamic
terror group, Boko Haram and
Ansarul.
In a statement, released by their
spokesman, Prof Ango Abdullahi,
the Elders Forum warm the Federal
Government on the decision and
added they will head to court if
rights of their people are infringe
by the decision.
The NEF spokesperson said that
“we don’t know the content of the
proscription (Ban) as regards the
Boko Haram and Ansarul.
“Boko Haram, to my
understanding, is not an
organization that has been in
existence under the Nigerian laws.
You proscribe an organisation
when it is recognised or registered
with the Corporate Affairs
Commission as an organisation.
It was founded as an organisation
offending the laws of Nigeria. This
is the basis one can say that such
organisation could be proscribed.
“But, outside that, one begins to
hope that there will not be
infringement on freedom of
association, freedom of speech,
freedom of propagating religious
beliefs and many rights that are
enshrined in the Nigerian
constitution.”
Prof Abdullahi added that, “I hope
that none of these freedoms will
be touched because if they touch
them there is a clear infringement
on the right of the citizens. And the
citizens will go to court to
challenge the violation of their
rights.”
“Our concern is that these
organisations are not in any law
book, not in Corporate Affairs.
Government initially said they
didn’t know the group. So you only
proscribed what is in existence
under the law.
“What I thought government
should do is to concentrate on
what they are doing and to see in
what way these people can
emerge and engage in discussion
and dialogue so that these crises
could come to an end.
“Our concern is that our rights as
citizens will not in any way be
breached.
“Everybody was happy when the
committee on peace and dialogue
was set up, and then soon after
there was a declaration of state of
emergency.
The people you said they should
come and talk with you, how will
they come out when there is a
state of emergency? How do you
expect them to come out?
The proscription, again, is
undermining the work of the
committee; the committee cannot
make progress after this
proscription.
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