A non-governmental organisation based in Osogbo, Osun State, the Justice Now Foundation (JNF), has called for the arrest and investigation of the operatives of a civil society organisation code-named Civil Societies Coalition for the Emancipation of Osun State (CSCEOS).

JNF, in a statement issued in Osogbo over the weekend and endorsed by its chairman, Mr Lanre Afolayanka, said the group has directed its lawyers to write the Nigeria Police and the Department of State Services (DSS) to immediately arrest and investigate the leader of the organisation, Comrade Adeniyi, Alimi Sulaiman, “who on Wednesday, 20th July, penned a press statement accusing the highest disciplinary organ of the Nigerian Judiciary, the National Judicial Council (NJC) of forgery, financial inducement and outright corruption.”

“We read with utter shock, the statement signed by one Comrade Sulaiman, who accused Vice- President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Prof Yemi Osinbajo; Osun State Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola; leadership of the Nigerian Judicial Council, with its panel led by Justice Ibrahim N Auta and others, of bribery and corruption in a well-planned plot to sack Justice Folahanmi Oloyede, who was found guilty of bridging the ethics of her office,” the group said.

Recall Justice Folahanmi Oloyede, a justice of the Osun State High Court was summarily dismissed from the Nigerian Judiciary by the NJC last week for overstepping her ethics of office that demands non-involvement in political matters.

Justice Oloyede, in 2015, reportedly wrote a petition to the Osun State House of Assembly, disparaging the person of the governor and government of Osun State.

“Since the group stated as a matter of fact that N4.7 billion was raised in June 2015 by Vice- President Osinbajo, APC governors and its national leader and former Governor of Lagos State, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Nigerian Police and the Department of State Security must ascertain the veracity of this claim and, when found out to be wrong, proceed to charge the operatives of the CSO to court for injurious libel.”

The group stressed: “We consider this accusation to be very weighty and deserving of proper investigation. However, going by its stock-in-trade, nothing emanating from the CSCEOS should be taken serious by members of the society. As a matter of fact, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC had two months ago invited the two operatives of CSCEOS to its Ibadan office to give reasons why it should not be prosecuted for writing unsubstantiated petition against the person of Ogbeni Aregbesola.

“The latest round of accusation by CSCEOS must not be allowed to go unpunished. There should be a limit to how much falsehood on peddles. Having failed to remove Governor Aregbesola through the backdoor, by raising that petition through Justice Oloyode, it appears the latest strategy of the group is to cast aspersion on national figures.”

“We call on all security agencies to be mindful of this group who would stop at nothing to soil the reputation of hardworking Nigerians who have spent considerable part of their life time serving this country. Failure to arrest and investigate CSCEOS will only embolden them to perpetuate more illegality in the future.”

•Photo shows CSCEOS leader, Comrade Adeniyi, Alimi Sulaiman.

Update news