Comrade Usman Okai Austin, a former member of the House of Representatives representing the Dekina/Bassa federal constituency, has been arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Omoyele Sowore, an activist politician, revealed that Okai was picked up from his home on Wednesday by DSS agents acting in a gestapo fashion.
Posting on X, Sowore said Okai was arrested for expressing views against Governor Usman Ododo of Kogi State.
Sowore wrote: “Imagine how these lawless @OfficialDSSNG mercenaries are abducting, torturing, and dehumanizing a Nigerian citizen, @Austinokai just because he expresses himself against illegitimate Gov. Ododo of Kogi State. #RevolutionNow #FreeAustinOkaiNow
“Lawless @OfficialDSSNG at it again. They must release @Austinokai immediately, with no room for govt security agencies acting as mercenary for corrupt, unscrupulous and illegitimate political hacks such as Ododo, Yahaya Bello and co! #FreeAustinOkaiNow.”
Okai has been outspoken in his criticism of the purported flaws in Ododo’s government.
Ododo was recently tasked by Okai to limit what he called the “unchecked and excessive powers” of Habiba Onumoko, the state’s accountant general.
Okai claimed financial mismanagement and excessive meddling in governance, accusing the accountant general of going beyond her constitutional authority.
He said that Ododo’s government had been “taken over” by the accountant general’s conspiracy.
