I’m alive, El-Zakzaky speaks from detention
El-Zakzaky, who made his first public appearance at the headquarters of the Department of State Services (DSS) yesterday, after over two years in its detention facilities, said that the service initially denied his personal doctor access to him until he rejected the medication from the service’s doctors.
Speaking to newsmen yesterday, he equally thanked Nigerians for sustaining his life with endless prayers, noting: “It was severe on me on Monday but subsequently it started subsiding and for the first time at least the security allowed me to see my own doctor.
“So it was my own doctors who examined me. Before I used to be examined by the security doctors, but this time I did not agree, and my own doctors came to examine me. I am getting better, thanks for all your prayers.”
Explaining the reasons for showing him to the public with his wife, the spokesperson of the service, Nnanna Nnochiri, said that it was basically to dispel his death rumour.
“In the last two days, there was unfounded rumour spreading across Nigeria that the leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, Sheik Ibrahim El-Zakzaky passed on in the custody of the service,” he noted, adding: “However, as you can see, and from your interview with him, he pointedly told you that he is okay.
“That will settle all the doubting Thomases across the country and those who wanted to capitalise on the said rumour to forment trouble in the country. They can now see that the man is alive, hale and hearty and up and doing.
“You saw him with his wife and the fact was that some people wanted to take advantage of some developments in some parts of the country to make trouble and mobilise the people to engage in untoward activities, which can impact very negatively on the security, stability, and order of the nation.
“The fact is, now that they have seen that the man is alive and that nothing happened to him, we want to believe that such persons who ab-initio have planned to take advantage of such situation should desist from every plan or act they may have put in place.
