Juliana Francis
A social media influencer, Nnamdi Chudi, who was arrested and detained for cyberstalking, has returned from his detention to reveal the conditions of detainees in Police cells at Force Headquarters in Abuja.
On his Twitter handle, Chude Nnamdi@chude__ said while he was in detention at the Force FCID Abuja, he met a lot of inmates, whose stories simply brought to his heart and made him determined to render them assistance.
According to him, many had been in that detention facility for close to eight months for offenses that were bailable.
He also met the corpse member, Nnamdi Emeh, who was arrested and detained for blowing the whistle on the alleged atrocious activities of some police operatives in Anambra State.
He said that the weeping of the corps member broke his heart, and urged members of the civil society organisation to do all possible to assist Emeh.
His words: “Some have spent five-eight months in the cell for bailable offenses and many abandoned. I promised myself to help as many as I can and so far, I’ve helped three inmates regain their freedom.
“There’re many poor inmates who have been there for months because they can’t afford a lawyer or find sureties. Many of them are there for light offenses and many are also innocent.
“A lot of innocent people are perishing due to the Nigeria Judiciary’s poor and slow system. I’ve been helping some of the forgotten inmates financially since then.
“Many of the inmates there survive by begging with No hope or external help. I don’t think I can put everything in writing, it’s tough, very tough. Nnamdi is one of the inmates I met in detention.
“The last time I visited the station, he cried to me bitterly, I’ve not slept well ever since then. He was recently transferred to Anambra, and nobody is allowed to see him since then. Why has the police refused to charge him in court?
“I call on Civil societies, human rights organizations, and other concern bodies to please intervene in Nnamdi Emeh’s case.”
Reacting to what Chude shared on his Twitter handle, two human rights advocacy groups have reached out to him, promising to provide legal aid for victims of abuse.
