The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Sokoto State strongly condemns the arrest of Shafi’u Umar Tureta, Special Assistant on Media to Senator Aminu Waziri Tambuwal. Tureta was detained earlier today, Sunday, August 25, 2024, by the police, allegedly on the orders of Sokoto State Governor, Ahmed Aliyu.
The arrest follows Tureta’s sharing of a viral video clip showing the Governor struggling to speak in English and another widely circulated video of cash being sprayed at the Governor’s wife’s birthday party.
“We wish to remind the Governor that these videos were likely recorded by his office’s or family’s cameramen and initially leaked by those personnel.
“Under Nigerian law, it is not a crime to share videos of public events involving the Governor or his family, regardless of how embarrassing they might be.
“It is the Governor’s responsibility, or that of his aides, to ensure that such materials do not reach the public domain.
“The PDP is concerned about the Sokoto State Government’s deteriorating human rights record, marked by harassment and the suppression of dissent.
“We urge Governor Aliyu to focus on improving the performance of his administration instead of attempting to silence free speech in the state.
“Our party members and media personnel are not to blame for the Governor’s personal and administrative shortcomings. We advise him to address his failures constructively rather than taking out his frustrations on innocent citizens.
“The PDP demands the immediate and unconditional release of Shafi’u Umar Tureta and an end to the Sokoto State Government’s ongoing crackdown on citizens for exercising their constitutional right to criticize poor governance and inappropriate conduct by those in power,” a statement by the spokesperson of the party, Hassan Sahabi Sanyinnawal, said.
