Kaduna group accuses el-Rufai of ordering arrest of its president

Nasir el-Rufai, governor of Kaduna, has allegedly ordered the arrest of Awema Dio Maisamari, president of the Adara Development Association (ADA).

According to a statement by Danladi Yarima, a former president of the association, Maisamari was arrested alongside Joseph Abdallah, treasurer of the association.

Yarima said the duo were arrested by the state police command on Saturday on the orders of the el-Rufai, over a press statement purportedly insulting the governor in December 2018.

He said the governor ordered the arrest of Maisamari who attended the town hall meeting which held in Kasuwan Magani between the governor and religious and community leaders over the killings in Kajuru local government area of the state.

“We were at the Town Hall meeting which the governor held with community and religious leaders in Kasuwan Magani on Saturday over the killings in villages in Kajuru Local Government Area last week,” Yarima said.

“Maisamari wanted to talk at the Town Hall meeting, then the governor said he will not talk. The governor ordered that he should be taken out of the hall and he was taken out by security personnel. From there, he was taken to Kaduna.

“They said he abused the governor in a press statement he issued in December 2018 and that the press statement was not an official one from the ADA.

“The police said he issued the statement in his personal capacity and asked him to produce any executive member of the association who can testify that the press statement was an official statement of the ADA.”

Yarima said Maisamari called Abdallah to testify.

He said Abdallah told the police that even though he was not in town when the statement was issued, it reflected resolutions taken at a meeting of the association.

He added that the duo were later taken to the criminal investigations department (CID), where they were detained after they were asked to write statements.

“They were expected to be charged to court on Monday, but sources said the police were still preparing the charges and could not take them to court,” he said.

Luka Godwin, national secretary of the association, condemned the arrest, calling for the immediate release of Maisamari and other Adara community leaders.

Efforts to reach Samuel Aruwan, spokesman of the governor, to respond to the allegation proved abortive as he did not respond to phone calls and text messages.