By Shola Abayomi.
The Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), has rebuked President Muhammadu Buhari for claiming that the fate of its leader, Ibrahim El-Zakzaky was not in the hands of the Federal Government but lies with the courts.
The IMN, also known as Shiites, in a statement issued today by the President, Media Forum of the group, Ibrahim Musa, queried the Federal Government for making such claim after disregarding the ruling of the Federal High Court Abuja, which freed El-Zakzaky in December 2016.
The statement said: “In December 2016 the Federal High Court in Abuja freed Sheikh Zakzaky from the illegal detention, ordered that he, along with his wife, be compensated to the tune of N50m, a house be provided for him in any part of the country he desires and security be provided for his protection.
“The Buhari government deliberately acted in contempt of court and refused to respect the judiciary. So which court is the presidency talking about that will decide the fate of our leader?”
The IMN also described the fresh court case instituted by the Kaduna State government against El-Zakzaky as a mischievous plot to continually keep him in detention.
“That the government mischievously concocted a new case in Kaduna, three years after the Zaria massacre, accusing the leader of the movement whose wife was shot, three children were killed, elder sister and nephew were burned alive and he was also shot severally, of abetting homicide.
“This was followed by a case in which over 100 members of the movement were freed by the High Court in Kaduna with a ‘No Case Submission’ implying that the case was only a mischief of keeping the revered leader in illegal detention”, the statement added.