Adams Aliyu Oshiomhole former labor leader, turned politician who 2012 was elected for a second term as the Governor of Edo State in Nigeria on the platform of the Action Congress, is in support of Olisa Metuh’s handcuffs.
There have been different reactions to national publicity secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party’s appearance in court in handcuffs, with the opposition party accusing President Muhammadu Buhari of attempting to break the spirit of PDP through such measure.
During a meeting held yesterday Tuesday with the new council of the Edo state chapter of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), in Benin, the governor said there was nothing wrong with restraining Metuh.
He said ,“If those accused of lesser crimes are handcuffed and paraded by the police and get no sympathy from the public, Mr. Oliseh Metuh and others, accused of diverting huge public funds, should not have sympathy”.
Peter Okhiria, his spokesman quoted him as saying. “I want to appeal to the media to join President Buhari in fighting the anti-corruption war because if we don’t, and we allow these people to harass the president to silence, all of us are in trouble. “I saw some headlines querying why should Metuh be in handcuffs. If people who steal he-goats, dried grass cutters are in handcuffs; I have been to the police station several times and I see young men who rob, not more than N500,000, in handcuffs; they are paraded and made to seat on the floor. Why should certain set of criminals be treated as if they are not suspected criminals and serious crimes at that?
He went further to say that, “When you all reported lavishly how under the former president, the former defence chief set up a military tribunal to try soldiers who ran away from battle field and they were condemned to death, it was only Femi Falana who was consistent in fighting their case”.
