ABUJA, Nigeria – African Action Congress presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of unlawfully targeting citizens after two defendants, including a Bayero University Kano (BUK) student, were remanded in prison custody over alleged cyberbullying.
Sowore said he witnessed the proceedings involving Maryam Isa Shehu and another defendant before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, claiming both had spent nearly 30 days in EFCC detention before being arraigned.
Okay News reports that the defendants were subsequently remanded in custody until August 31. Sowore said Maryam was taken to Suleja Prison, while the other defendant was sent to Kuje Prison.
He described Maryam’s situation as particularly concerning because she is a final-year student at BUK and is scheduled to begin her final examinations on Saturday.
“None of that appeared to matter,” Sowore said, criticising the decision to keep the student in custody while her case is pending.
The former presidential candidate accused the EFCC, under Chairman Ola Olukoyede, of abandoning its anti-corruption mandate and targeting citizens over criticism of the agency.
“An anti-corruption agency should be fighting corruption, not turning itself into an institution for hunting down, detaining and prosecuting citizens over criticism or alleged ‘cyberbullying,’” he said.
Sowore described the EFCC as “inherently evil” and questioned the decision to detain a university student for nearly a month before arraignment and subsequently remand her in prison.
His comments came amid growing attention to the cases, although the allegations against the defendants and the EFCC’s position on Sowore’s claims were not included in his statement.
