Igbo apex Socio-Cultural group, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Lagos State chapter, Friday, joined millions of other Nigerians to condemn Nigeria’s secret Police, the Department of State Services, DSS, over what it described as the illegal arrest and detention of the Chairman of Capital Oil and Gas Industries Limited, Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah, since May 5, 2017.
Ohanaeze Ndigbo whose members stormed the Justice Muhammed Idris Federal High Court Ikoyi, Lagos, in solidarity for one of its illustrious sons, Dr. Ubah, however, called on all Igbo sons and daughters within and across Lagos State, to storm the Court enmasse, on Thursday, May 18, 2017, in support of their Grand Patron, at the resumed hearing of the trial. Recall that on Tuesday, May 9, 2017, Justice Idris ordered the DSS to produce Dr. Ubah before his court today (Friday), and show why the oil mogul should not be released unconditionally.
The Honorable Justice was ruling in the ex-parte application filed by Ifeoma Esom, Counsel to Dr. Ubah, to compel Ubah’s unconditional release from the custody of the DSS, where he has been since Friday, May 5, 2017.
But in flagrant disobedience of the Court Order, the DSS failed to produce Dr. Ubah in Court today (Friday). Justice Idris, thus adjourned till May 18, for the substantive matter to be heard. However, speaking to Journalists outside the Court premises, Chairman, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Lagos, Barr. Fabian Onwughalu said: “All the affidavits, including the affidavits of the DSS that is before this court indicates that actually it was a matter of business relationship and contractual agreement that went sour which is supposed to be resolved civilly through a civil process by the court, instead of employing government’s agents of coercion to coerce our brother (Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah) and our Grand Patron into accepting what he did not do, into roping him into serious and extinct criminal matters.
“By the grace of God Almighty, I am urging all our people, Ndigbo in Lagos State, to come enmasse on May 18, and observe the resumed hearing. It is good we are here. Some of us who are here should take the message to all nooks and cranny of Igboland that Chief (Dr.) Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah is not a criminal. He is a decent Nigerian doing a decent business.” Onwughalu added that “there was a time the Petroleum Tanker Drivers organised a massive strike and he (Ubah) was the person who deflated it.
He released products into the Nigerian market to assist the newly sworn in government of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari. Now, how can you assist such a person of subversive activities against the State, that he has tried to help, tried to put a very right footing when they were just new in the office. So, Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah is a very patriotic Nigerian and he remains so.
And we shall always honour him. So, we call on Ndigbo to disregard the news making the round.” “We are supporting Ubah because he is patriotic, he has released fuel to cushion the effect of strike embarked on by Petroleum Tanker Drivers. Nigerians are all aware. Someone who has done this is a patriotic Nigerian.
Patriotism is not by mere words of the mouth, it is by your actions. So, he has done so much for Nigeria and he has done so much for Ndigbo because he is our Grand Patron. We made him our Grand Patron because of the qualities in him, and we shall continue to stand by him,” he affirmed.
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