The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Tuesday, said the invitation by the Imo State Police Command to its former Secretary, Owerri Branch, Mr Chinedu Agu, should not be turned “into a tool for intimidation or the silencing of citizens who have exercised their constitutionally guaranteed rights or spoken truth to power”.
The National President, NBA, Mazi Afam Osuigwe, SAN, stated this in a release.
THE WHISTLER reports that Agu was invited to appear before the state command’s X-Squad Unit on Wednesday, 17 September 2025, on allegations of “criminal defamation” and “conduct likely to cause a breach of the peace”.
Osuigwe, in the release, said NBA recognised “the constitutional and statutory powers of the police to investigate criminal complaints”. He however noted that “criticism of government policies, institutions, or officials is not a crime”.
He wrote, “The persistent reliance on criminal defamation and similar offences as a pretext for harassment is a dangerous relic of authoritarianism and has no place in a democracy founded on the rule of law.
“The NBA reiterates that freedom of expression, guaranteed under Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), is the bedrock of accountability and civic engagement. Any action that seeks to muzzle this right is not only unconstitutional but also deeply inimical to democratic governance.”
The NBA reaffirmed its stand with Chinedu Agu. It added that it had directed a team of senior members of the Bar to monitor the process and ensure that his fundamental rights were protected
Osuigwe appealed to the Commissioner of Police, Imo State Command, “to resist any attempt to use the police as an instrument of oppression or political persecution”.
According to him, “We remind the Imo State government and all state actors that democracy thrives on open debate, dissenting opinions, and constructive criticism. The deployment of coercive state machinery to suppress such engagement is unacceptable.
“The NBA remains unwavering in its commitment to defending the rule of law, the independence of the legal profession, and the civic space. We will not hesitate to take every lawful step, nationally and internationally, to resist any attempt to criminalise free speech or intimidate our members.”
Agu had promised to honour the invitation through a post he made on his Facebook page. He also stated that his criticisms of the state government might have informed the invite.
Quoting him, “”On 26th August 2025, when it was announced that the Governor of Imo State would host a dinner in Enugu for Imo lawyers attending the Nigerian Bar Association Annual General Conference, I authored a piece titled, ‘How Can We Feast While the House of Justice Burns: A Response to Imo State Government’s Invitation to Imo Lawyers for a Welcome Dinner in Enugu’, published on 27th August.
“In that article, I criticised the propriety of hosting such an event in Enugu while Imo State remained without an Acting Chief Judge, an Attorney-General, vacation courts, or even a functional Ministry of Lands capable of conducting a simple search.”
Mr Agu said he published another article on 29 August, “Tears from Enugu: A Lawyer’s Heartbreaking Diary from a State that Works to a State in Ruins,” where he made a comparison between Enugu and the “decay in Imo”.
He also admitted that when photographs of Nigerian governors, including the governor of Imo State, surfaced on 5 September 2025 as they bade farewell to President Bola Tinubu at the airport en route to vacation, he wrote another article, “Waving at Planes as Imo Churns is Chasing Rats While the House Burns.”
He added, “Most recently, on 10th September 2025, I challenged the constitutionality of the resolution of the Imo State House of Assembly renaming Douglas Road after Governor Hope Uzodinma. I noted that such power lies with the Owerri Municipal Council, and I urged the Assembly to focus on its constitutional oversight mandate rather than trivial pursuits.”
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