El-Zakzaky not in protective custody, Shiites reply Lai Mohammed

The Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) has faulted the claim by the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed that its leader, Ibrahim El-zakzaky is in “protective custody” with his family.

This followed the statement credited to the minister in an interview on a television programme.Mohammed had claimed that the leader of the IMN leader, also called the Shiites, is detained in a house specially built for him and his family to shield them away from harm.

A statement by the President of the IMN Media Forum, Mr. Ibrahim Musa described the minister’s statement as “fraudulent.”He urged the Federal Government to disclose the “protective custody” to journalists to ascertain his level of freedom.

“Why should the executive arm of the government insist that El-Zakzaky is in protective custody when a Federal High Court in Abuja had rejected that notion and freed our leader?” he asked.

He added that the court had ruled that protective custody was not in the Constitution or any laws known to man.Musa said it was an insult to the intelligence of Nigerians for the minister to have said that El-Zakzaky was neither in prison, nor detained by the Department of State Services (DSS).

“El-Zakzaky’s liberties have been curtailed and he has been denied his free movement and association. He is also being denied access to medical care of his choice and has not been allowed to see his lawyer in the last year.

“We challenge the Federal Government to invite journalists, El-Zakzaky’s supporters and the international community to visit him in the said house and assess his degree of freedom,” he said.