BREAKING NEWS: DSS has no plan to arrest shadow govt promoters – Counsel

 The lead counsel for the Department of State Services, Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN), has stated that the agency has no plans to arrest anyone in connection with the proposed shadow government led by the 2007 presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Prof. Pat Utomi.

He made this statement in Abuja on Wednesday shortly after submitting a new application to the Federal High Court in Abuja for an interlocutory injunction preventing Utomi from making any further public comments or participating in rallies related to a suit pending against him regarding his declared intention to establish a shadow government in the country.

Kehinde, while speaking with journalists, said, “Our client is not interested in arresting anybody on this matter, having on its own accord submitted itself to the jurisdiction of the honourable court to interpret the Constitution and determine the legality or otherwise of the ‘shadow government’ or any other nomenclature that it may be so named.

“It must be pointed out that our client, under its current leadership, is a very civilised organisation with absolute confidence in the rule of law and that is why its leadership or any of its personnel will always approach the court of law whenever it feels that there is any infraction on its statutory duties by anyone or the rights of its personnel like the case instituted against SERAP by some of its personnel, is being compromised. Let the court have the final say.”

According to the DSS lead counsel, Nigerians should ensure that constitutional democracy and the rule of law thrive in Nigeria.

“It is good that, as members of the fourth estate of the realm, you keep watch over the case filed against the formation of the ‘shadow government’ by Prof. Pat Utomi and his group.

“The civil suit, as you are aware, was filed by the State Security Service in consonance with its statutory mandate of ensuring internal peace and avoidance of any form of insurrection and treasonable felony against the democratically elected government in the country.

“We, as counsel to the SSS, have just filed an application seeking an interlocutory injunction against the defendant and his group pending the determination of the substantive suit.

“The application, being a public document, can be obtained from the registry of the honourable court,” he noted.

Kehinde explained that the application was premised on the fact that despite the pendency of the substantive action, “the service of same on the defendant and the entry of appearance to same by his counsel, Mike Ozekhome, SAN, the defendant has continued to make inflammatory statements capable of igniting chaos in the country instead of abiding by the hallowed principle that civilised parties before the court are expected to maintain the status quo pending the determination of the substantive matter”.

“What our client has submitted to the court is for the interpretation of the Constitution, whether any form of government by whatever nomenclature can be formed or allowed outside the Constitution,” he added.

According to Kehinde, the new application seeks mainly, “an order of interlocutory injunction, restraining the defendant/respondent (Utomi), his agents, privies, associates, servants, workers or any person acting through him from staging road shows, rallies, public lectures or any form of public gathering, newspaper publications, television programs, jingles or any other public enlightenment programme (s) aimed at sensitizing, instigating, propagating or in any way promoting the purported “shadow government/shadow cabinet” or its objectives or goals with the view to establishing the said “shadow government” pending the hearing and determination of this substantive suit”.

He mentioned that the grounds for the application included that, if not restrained, Utomi’s proposed rallies, road shows and actions could constitute a serious threat to public order, safety and the country’s unity.

The SSS said it gathered through monitoring and intelligence reports that Utomi, who was out of the country and due to return on June 6, planned “to stage road shows and rallies under the guise of freedom of speech and association in a bid to cause public discontent in furtherance of his establishment of the purported ‘shadow government/shadow cabinet’”.

On May 5, Utomi announced the formation of a shadow government under the banner of the Big Tent Coalition Shadow Government, which aims to provide a credible opposition to President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

The PUNCH reports that the DSS filed a lawsuit on May 14, marked as FHC/ABJ/CS/937/2025, at the Federal High Court in Abuja against Utomi.

The lawsuit alleges that Utomi attempted to illegally usurp President Bola Tinubu’s executive powers by establishing a shadow government.