DISTURBED by the continuous detention of  Major Hamza Al-Mustapha who was the chief security officer to the late head of state, General Sani Abacha, youths from across the 36 states of the country on Thursday, staged a peaceful protest in Kano metropolis demanding his  immediate release. They also called on the Kano Emirate Council to, as a matter of urgency, wade into the long incarceration.

According to the unprecedented number of  youths who trooped into the ancient city of Kano, carrying placards with inscriptions like “Goodluck, please free Al-Mustapha”, “Free Al-Mustapha”, “12 years is too long, enough of this persecution” marched through the Kofar Nasarawa and state roads to the Kano State Government House complex, saying the continued incarceration of Hamza Al-Mustapha was no longer justifiable.

The protesters, who were led  by Chief Igwe Martins,  under the aegis of the movement for the emancipation of Hamza Al-Mustapha, also carried an effigy of a human corpse in a traditional casket marked “rule of law is dead”.

While speaking with  the Emir of Kano, Dr Ado Bayero, Martins urged well meaning Nigerians to explore all means of reaching out to relevant authorities aimed at ensuring the immediate release of Al-Mustapha.