Garba Shehu: Buhari administration healthiest since 1999 — we respect citizens’ rights

Garba Shehu, presidential spokesman, says no administration since 1999 has performed better than that of President Muhammadu Buhari in terms of respecting the rights of citizens.

He said this on Friday, while featuring on Good Morning Nigeria, a daily breakfast show on the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA).

Shehu was speaking on 22 years of uninterrupted democracy in Nigeria, and how the current administration has performed so far.

According to him, the Buhari administration places national interest above that of individuals, especially in relation to justice and aligning with the rule of law.

“Before the coming of the present administration, there was flagrant and deliberate refusal to obey the courts. People in the political opposition were detained without trial, and courts would say release this person or that person, and they were not released,” he said.

“I want to think that the current justice administration under Malami is governed by a global philosophy, which places national interest above individual interest.

“Where an individual’s interest — that right belonging to the individual even though justified by the court of law — threatens the interest of the larger majority, now there’s a caveat on that. In some instances, that has been misconstrued to mean disobedience at the centre.

“But by and large, with regards to the rights of citizens and respect of the law, this perhaps is the healthiest administration we’ve ever had from 1999 till date, in terms of respect for the courts, and respect for the rights of citizens. As it is, we don’t have political detainees in this country.”