Abdulrasheed Bawa, the suspended Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, has been in the Department of State Services’ detention for 33 days.
Bawa was taken into custody by the secret police on June 14 just after President Bola Tinubu had suspended him.
In a statement announcing Bawa’s suspension, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation’s Director of Information, Willie Bassey, cited “weighty allegations of abuse of office leveled against him” as the rationale for the President’s choice.
The DSS has not provided any information regarding the precise offenses for which Bawa was detained, the depth of the investigation, or whether charges would be brought against him in court after his arrest.
A statement by the DSS spokesperson, Peter Afunanya, shortly after Bawa’s suspension on June 14, said the embattled EFCC chair arrived at the facility of the DSS in response to an invitation.
“The Department of State Services has invited Abdulrasheed Bawa, the suspended Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. Bawa arrived a few hours ago. The invitation relates to some investigative activities concerning him,” the DSS spokesman had said.
Afunanya did not return many calls on Monday seeking an update on the situation. Additionally, he did not reply when our journalist texted him on his mobile device.
Pelumi Olajengbesi, a human rights attorney based in Abuja, commented on Bawa’s ongoing imprisonment by claiming that the DSS was breaking the law by keeping Bawa in detention without charge.
He said, “Without any contradiction, the continued detention of Bawa by the secret police for over three weeks now is unconstitutional and a breach of the fundamental rights of the detainee.
“Illegality cannot beget another illegality. The DSS should immediately release Bawa to rejoin his family members without further delay, or charge him to court to face charges preferred against him by the Federal Government. Anything outside these two options is alien to law and won’t stand.”
