Senate Orders NDLEA to Stop Harassing Kashamu as Senator Raises Alarm Over Planned Abduction

Posted by African Examiner Featured, Latest Headlines, News Thursday, February 4th, 2016

Ayodele Afolabi, Abuja

The senate has warned the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), to stop any further harassment of Senator Buruji Kashamu over alleged drug related offence committed in the United States of America.

Senate’s order followed a petition forwarded to its committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petition by Senator Kashamu’s lawyer Ajibola Oluyede over planned abduction of the embattled senator by the agency.

Oluyede in his submission before the committee, alleged that based on information gotten from whistle blowers within the agency, plan had reached advance stage of abducting or kidnapping the Senator to United States of America (USA) on phantom charges of drug trafficking.

According to him, the plan, coded ‘rendition plot’, is always used by the American government against fugitives or terrorists none of which Kashamu can be said to be.

He explained further that the person behind the plot is the immediate past Chairman of NDLEA, Ahmadu Giade who according to him, having failed in achieving such illegal action against Kashamu as NDLEA boss through court pronouncements, now want to achieve it as Special Assistant on Narcotics to the Attorney- General of the Federation (AGF), Ibrahim Malami .

” We have it on good authority that the former Chairman of NDLEA, Ahmadu Giade, who is now a special assistant on narcotics to the Attorney General of the Federation, is hell bent in achieving what he failed to illegally achieve against our client, Buruji Kashamu.

” Specifically, whistle blowers within the agency, had informed us that abduction plan against our client is being perfected, the reason why we are here before you to call the agency to order, since competent court of jurisdiction had ruled against such harassment and plots in May last year.

“The NDLEA under Giade on the 23rd of May last year invaded the Lagos residence of Senator Buruji Kashamu on the same phantom allegation but asked to vacate the place by the Federal High Court in Lagos on the 27th of the same month, with ruling that “Nigeria had no business operating with foreign government against Kashamu on matters that had been adjudicated upon years back in favour of the senator”, he explained.

Although the Deputy Chairman of the committee, Senator Bala Ibn Na’Allah described the said whistle blowers within NDLEA, as internal conspirators but he said it was wrong for the agency to be carrying out any of its operations without regard for the rule of law, since such alleged plots had been ruled against in the court of law.

He added that based on facts on ground, the senate reason along with the petitioner by frowning against a situation where a public servant will refuse to obey pronouncement of court and that in view of the legal status between Kashamu and Federal Government, any purported plot against him by the agency should be discarded for now.

A submission the Committee’s chairman, Samuel Anyanwu ruled over by telling the NDLEA officials present, to maintain status quo pending completion of thorough investigation into the allegation.

But the NDLEA representative on behalf of the Chairman, Roli Bode George, asked to be excused from the investigation since the matter is before the court of Appeal, while the Attorney General of the federation and former NDLEA boss, asked for more time to appear before the committee.

The embattled senator at a media chat with journalists later, said he had never in his life stepped his feet on the soil of America, let alone, carrying out any crime there.

According to him, the case was purely one of mistaken identity that had already been adjudicated upon by competent court of jurisdiction in the United Kingdom in his favour after which he came back to Nigeria in 2003 to join in its development .

“If it is not because of politics , I wouldn’t have been facing this travail”, he lamented.