Bishop
Adeoye in a statement on Monday, described the visit to his residence as
unusual and uncalled for. The one-time Chairman of Nigeria Union of Journalists
(NUJ) in the state noted that the police mission to his residence may not be
unconnected with his critical assessment of policies of both the FG and that of
Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State. He said: “I belong to a class of people
who will not close their eyes to injustice and maladministration. I cannot
withstand government’s anti-democratic ethos in a society expected to treat its
people equally.
I cannot choose to be mute and deaf when people are hungry and
dying because of bad economic policies. “If saying the truth is an offence, I
am ready to die for it. As I mentioned during my protest, things are becoming
more difficult for Nigerians and our government appeared not to have answers to
myriads of problems facing the nation. I said Nigeria is in chain and I have
not been proved wrong. “I was surprised to see six stern looking and fully
armed policemen storm my house on Sunday morning.
They claimed to have come
from Zone XI Command looking for some miscreants. Only one of the policemen
wore uniform while others were on vests bearing police and they didn’t come
with any police vehicle but a private car. “First of all, there was no report
of any threat to peace or crime in my area at Hallehuyah Estate and till now we
haven’t heard of any. Secondly, my house was not the only one in the
neigbhourhood, yet mine was the only one visited. “Although, I was not harassed
by them but this mission to my house is still suspicious. Adequate report of
this case is being made at appropriate quarters but I need to raise alarm.
I
cannot be afraid but I must not keep quiet as well” he stated. Bishop Adeoye
said he was unmindful of clandestine move by agents of the state against
members of his group, the Civil Societies Coalition of Emancipation of Osun
State (CSCEOS) which had stood firmly behind the suspended Justice Folahanmi
Oloyede and defended her before the National Judicial Commission (NJC) and has
exposed the pathetic mis-governance in the state. “It appears our hard-earned
democracy is about to be jeopardized by those who contributed nothing to it but
are fortunate to find themselves in the positions of authority.
“It will be sad
if state security apparatus such as the Army, the Police, the Directorate of
Security Services (DSS) and other paramilitary forces are being used as weapons
of destruction by those in government against all their perceived enemies.
“Creating an atmosphere of fear is not the best for our democracy. We are
granted certain rights in our constitution. If Nigerians are denied these
rights, then, anarchy will be the order of the day. A little spark can cause a
serious fire which can consume anyone”, he added.
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