₦airaland Forum

InvertedHammer:
/
You didn't get it. Did you?
Back then unless printed, nobody knew.
Now someone in Ukraine can say anything about Tinubu and DSS will be helpless. DSS is still picking people up today like the days of Abacha/IBB. What freedom of speech?
/

Baatunde:
I didn't get it...explain further. How did IBB/Abacha got to know of those who were criticizing them, and you are trying to imply that someone could criticise the military and they don't get to hear about it, then that someone must have been doing their talks in the corner of their bedroom. Even in those days . all perceived 'militant' groups like the Student and Labour Unions were usually infiltrated by government spies which was the norm of military regimes. The state security apparatuses were used much more brutally inmilitary times. See the case of Emefiele, DSS wanted to arrest him long ago, but Buhari was shielding him, will that happen with the khaki boys?, who is that DSS Director that dares go against the will of the Military Head of State?

You are still talking of freedom of speech, please give us the names of people who have been picked up by DSS as you claimed. Even the Gringories openly and covertly calling for 'religious' war and the Area Fadas inciting youth to cause disorder and 'revolution' are still walking free and you think this would happen with a military regime? Come on!

InvertedHammer:
/
You asked questions and answered you questions.

You said Buhari shielded Emefile. Yes! Buhari was the President. The buck stopped at his desk.

Abacha/IBB didn't pick everyone that criticized them else folks like Tinubu wouldn't have been alive today. They couldn't have escaped if the FG was as brutal as you claimed.

I am shocked that you pretend that people (including whistleblowers and journalists) have not been arrested or jailed recently for their online posts. Dare Akogun(Ogun), Abdulrasheed Akogun(Ogun), Rotimi Jolayemi, Kofi Bartel(PH), Sikiru Obarayese, Ambrose Nwogwugwu (Imo), Godfrey Chikwere (Ebonyi), Luka Binniyat, Jones Abiri, Mary Ekere, Jamil Mabai, Ahmed Salkida, Saifullah Mikailu, Samuel Ogundipe, Daniel Elombah, Timothy Elombah, Jafar Jafar, Obinna Don Norman, Gloria Mabeiam, Utitofon Ukpong, just to mention a few. By social media, I pointed out the anonymity it provides and non-proximal expose' from any part of the globe outside the reach and influence of the State apparatchik.

Don't be an echochamber for those who love the status quo because it provides covers for their impunity.

/

Baatunde:
Yes, I quite agree with you, Abacha doesn’t bother to arrest or imprison all those who criticised him, he simply sends Sgt Roger and Co to assassinate them. You however missed the part where Tinubu and other main NADECO advocates had to escape through Cotonou and seek asylum mostly in the US in order to run away from Abacha’s death squad. Don’t forget IBB and Dele Giwa.
Let us however do a simple analysis and limit it to just journalists for now excluding human right activists.

Nduka Irabor and Tunde Thompson_ detained without charges for 8 months under Buhari/Idiagbon
Ray Ekpu, Yakubu Mohammed and Dan Agbese all arrested and charged for sedition for writing an article against Abacha, their charges were later dropped.
George Mbah (TELL), Chris Anyanwu (Sunday Magazine), Ben Charles Obi (Classique Weekly) and Kunle Ajibade (The News)- all four arrested tried in secret with no representation and all sentenced to 15 years in prison_ for expressing doubt about the phantom coup plot supposedly uncovered by Al Mustapha.
Osa Director_ arrested and detained in 1995 for 34 days and arraigned in court in shackles meant to dehumanise
Nosa Igiebor (TELL)- arrested and detained in solitary confinements in 1995 for six months without trial with the confiscation of 100,00 copies of Tell. His lawyer attempted to sue the government and he himself was arrested and detained without charges.
Godwin Agbroko- arrested and detained for five months before being released when he won an international award.
Soji Omotunde (Concord) arrested and detained for over four months
Niran Malaolu- arrested for alleged involvement in a coup plot, sentenced to life but reduced to 15 years- lost part of his sight in detention.
Onome Osifo-Whiskey- detained for 173 days without any due process being followed or formally charged.
Babafemi Ojudu (The News) arrested and detained for 8 months with no trials or access to lawyers
Alex Ibru (Guardian) – survived assassination attack from Abach’s death squad
Dele Giwa _ assassinated with a parcel bomb under IBB.

Let me stop at these because there are more victims of unlawful detention and torture under the military, with some losing their livelihood, some lost their lives and for some their health and well being were seriously damaged by their incarceration. Now please do the same for all the names you have listed here so we can compare their ordeal with the ones above. Have you even heard of something called Decree 2 of 1984? Go and read about it and tell me whether this is something that would fly under even the worse civilian regime. Not bragging, but I think I am old enough to remember the brutal days of serious press repression under the military and even if similar stuffs had happened under civilian rules (like some said it did under Obasanjo), you still can not equate it with that of the military. I am glad however that we both agree that military coup is not the answer to the inadequacies of our democracy under civilians.

InvertedHammer:
/
So you see...there is really no significant difference between military and civilian rules in Nigeria. They are two sides of the same coin. Don't convince anyone that one is better than the other. Personally I prefer military rule. Democracy aka civilian rule is well alive in Cameroun, Equatorial Guinea and other countries in Africa where a man would be in power for 40 years through elections(?). That's why those countries are the greatest in Africa.

/

MEGAWATCH:
Anybody who is against the useless and less development civilian government in Nigeria is an IPOB member according to you.


It's like they used suffering swaer for Una ?

Tell us what was happening in the military regime that is not happening again now in Nigeria?

Larryndelaw:
You have freedom of speech and freedom to insult anyone now in civilian regime, if you try it during the military you will disappear without trace. You won't even have access to internet. Maybe you are not born when the Military killed Saro wiwa. OR the first letter BOMB in Nigeria that was sent by Babangida that killed DELE Giwa. When Tinubu was fighting the military for democracy in Nigeria Obi was busy selling Gala at UMUNEDE