Lagos (AFP) – Nigeria’s ex-national security advisor Thursday blamed his current legal woes on his military past, indicating he believed President Muhammadu Buhari was settling old political scores by prosecuting him.
Sambo Dasuki was arrested last December and is facing three trials in connection with illegally diverting security funds earmarked for fighting Boko Haram Islamists and the illegal possession of firearms.
But critics have speculated that Buhari is trying to settle an old political rivalry dating back decades.
Dasuki, a former army colonel, is reported to have been the officer who arrested Buhari in 1985 during a bloodless coup that ended his 20-month stint as military ruler.
In a statement submitted to an Abuja court, Dasuki said it was “crystal clear” he was being “punished by the powers that be for the perceived offences committed long before”, without elaborating.
Despite being granted bail by the three separate courts, Nigeria’s secret service has continued to detain Dasuki without pressing any new charges.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) court will decide on June 29 whether the Nigerian government denied Dasuki’s “right to freedom”.
Should the regional court rule in favour of Dasuki, he would be freed from custody but continue to be prosecuted on criminal charges.
The country’s anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, considers Dasuki a flight risk while Buhari has said the country cannot allow him to “jump bail”.
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