By Dirisu Yakubu
The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday, took the presidency to task over comments attributed to a presidential aide that the forced arrival in court in an ambulance of erstwhile party spokesman, Chief Olisa Metuh, was a Nollywood act.

Metuh arrives court in Ambulance

The party in its reaction said the “hateful” assertion by President Muhammadu Buhari’s Special Assistant on Social Media, Lauretta Onochie, had inevitably confirmed that the interest of the current administration in the matter was beyond the bounds of seeking justice in its prosecution.

The PDP, in a statement, by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, yesterday, said the presidency had been intruding into Chief Metuh’s case since inception just to set up the former spokesperson before the judiciary.

It said: “It is repulsive that a Presidential aide has once again intruded directly, with malicious suggestions, in a matter that is on judicial trial, thus further exposing that Chief Metuh’s travails in the course of the trial, may have been politically hatched and orchestrated.

“It is instructive to state that Chief Metuh, whose spinal chord ailment has badly deteriorated, was brought to court in his current medical state, sequel to the order of the trial judge.

“It is, therefore, irresponsible, wicked and an unpardonable act of inhumanity, for the presidency or any of its agents to mock Chief Metuh for obeying the order of court, even in his current state of health.”

Lamenting that there was a sinister design against Chief Metuh, the PDP said it had information that government agents had been harassing medical aides and practitioners across the country for offering any form of treatment or assistance to him.

The party said that viewing such alongside negative and hostile disposition towards medical reports on Metuh, any responsible person can safely conclude that there is a grand conspiracy to persecute the accused.

“While we are not opposed to the trial of any of our members for any matter whatsoever, we insist that the process must be fair, without external influences and in strict compliance with provisions of the law.