Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar has condemned the alleged brutal act meted on activist and politician, Omoyele Sowore.
He urged the Inspector General of police to release the politician unconditionally.
In a statement he personally signed on Thursday, Atiku said the action of the IGP Monitoring Team is a shameful abuse of power.
"It is wrong, unlawful, and must be condemned by all who believe in justice," he declared.
He further stated that Sowore’s only offence "is speaking out against injustice, nepotism, and misrule. For that, he was reportedly attacked at dawn, beaten, had his arm broken, and sprayed with chemicals by policemen acting on petitions from the IGP’s own office.
"This is personal vendetta, not policing.
"Even the Nigeria Police Regulation forbids this. Regulation 367 states:
'No police officer shall institute any legal proceeding in his own personal interest or in connection with matters arising out of his public duties.'
"The IGP cannot be a complainant and still deploy the force to carry out his grievance.
"This is not about Sowore alone, it is an attack on every Nigerian who dares to speak truth to power.
This must stop. And Sowore should be released immediately, and unconditionally, too. -AA."
Apart from Atiku, the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and other rights groups in the country have also demanded unconditional and immediate release of the detained politician.
Sowore cried out in the early morning of Thursday that his hand was broken by police officers.