The Katsina State Elders Forum has demanded the immediate and unconditional release of Professor Usman Yusuf, former Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
Professor Yusuf, a renowned hematologist and bone marrow transplantation specialist, was invited back to Nigeria from the US to head the NHIS.
However, he has been very critical of government in different interviews and speeches.
Daily Trust had reported how the EFCC raided his residence in Abuja last week, arresting him in the presence of his family members.
He was later arraigned for alleged fraud and remanded in custody.
But the forum believes Yusuf has done nothing wrong and is being detained for exercising his constitutional right to free speech.
The forum’s secretary, Aliyu Sani Muhammad, questioned President Bola Tinubu’s government, asking if democracy is being undermined.
Muhammad highlighted the discrepancy in the government’s treatment of Yusuf, who is accused of awarding a negligible contract to his nephew, whereas President Tinubu’s son, Seyi, was awarded a contract for the Lagos-Calabar Highway without proper approval.
“For this present government, there are people against Usman because of the way he was offering interviews. The Americans still need him, and all over the world, he is needed, we don’t have his type in Nigeria.
“Among the charges, there was a funny one that he gave his nephew a contract which is so negligible compared to what Tinubu gave his blood son Seyi,” he stated.
On his part, Senator Mamman Abubakar Danmusa, the acting chairman of the forum, warned President Tinubu of the consequences of Professor Yusuf’s continued detention, stating that it would not be palatable.