Falana knocks police over Melaye’s arraignment, imprisonment

Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), on Thursday criticized the Nigeria Police for arraigning Kogi-West lawmaker, Senator Dino Melaye in court on a stretcher.

Falana said in a statement on Thursday that the degrading and humiliating treatment meted out to Melaye was a violation of his fundamental human right.

The senior advocate said, “The arraignment of Senator Dino Melaye in a stretcher in Abuja on Wednesday and Lokoja on Thursday morning is unacceptable in a civilised society.

“It is particularly degrading and humiliating as it violates the fundamental right to the dignity of his person guaranteed by Section 34 of the constitution and Section 7 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.”

Falana, however, stated that Melaye’s ordeal was a reflection of the suffering ordinary Nigerians faced in the hands of security agents on a daily basis.

He, therefore, called on the National Assembly which has protested against Melaye’s arrest, to use the opportunity to call on the relevant agencies to turn a new leaf.