Ijaw Youth Council, IYC, worldwide, has called for the immediate release or arraignment in court of Niger Delta youths in the detention of the Directorate of State Security Services.
The group made the call in a statement issued by its President, Eric Omare.
The request was made against the background of the Friday arraignment of a journalist, Mr. Jones Abiri, who had been in detention for about two years without being taken to court.
IYC said it was unfortunate that it took the massive campaign of the Amnesty International, the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), human rights organisations, regional pressure groups and the efforts of human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana, to force the DSS to hurriedly charge Mr. Abiri to Abuja magistrate court.
The group said apart from Abiri, there were other Niger Delta youths still languishing in detention following their arrest over the Niger Delta Avengers inspired hostilities in the Niger Delta region.
IYC described as the height of illegality and against the letter and spirit of the 1999 Constitutional of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for citizens to be arrested and kept in DSS detention without trial for up to two years.
“At the time of issuing this statement, Niger Delta youths such as Mr. Alex Odogu (Spokesman, IYC, Abuja Chapter); Mr. Census Oluba; Mr. Germachy Oboko; John Fortune; Michael John; Gabriel Ogbu; Justice Golubus; Joshua Golubus; Felix Mieminye and several others are still in detention.
“In some of the cases like that of Mr. Census Oluba, courts of competent jurisdictions both in Delta State and Abuja have ordered for his release but the DSS refused to obey the orders of court.
“There is nowhere under Nigerian law which empowers the DSS to arrest and detain citizens indefinitely without charging them to court.
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“If the DSS has any case against the arrested Niger Delta youths, then they should be charged to court to answer for the allegations against them,” said IYC.
The group said it was convinced that Mr. Jones Abiri was charged to court because of the local and international campaign for his release led by Amnesty International and Femi Falana.
It therefore called on the Nigerian government to immediately release all Niger Delta youths in their detention or charge them to a court of competent jurisdiction without delay.
