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A federal high court sitting in Abuja, presided over by Justice Zainab Abubakar has remanded a journalist and publisher of an online medium, Cross River Watch, Agba Jalingo, at the medium security custodial center in Kuje, for publishing an article that was deemed ‘insulting’ to Elizabeth Ayade.
Elizabeth is wife to the younger brother of the Cross River state governor, Ben Ayade, whose administration, Jalingo’s Cross River Watch has been critical of.
The presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) in the 2023 general elections, Omoyele Sowore, and other activists and members of the Nigerian Civil Society (NCS), were present in court during Jalingo’s arraignment on Monday, March 27.
The two charges bordering on alleged false publication intended to cause annoyance, ill will and insult to the person of Elizabeth Ayade, wife to Frank Ayade, were preferred on Jalingo in suit no: FHC/ABJ/CR/565/2022.
Jalingo, however, pleaded not guilty to both charges.
The prosecution counsel, Fidelis Ogbobe, sought an adjournment for trial which the defense counsel, Baba Isa, did not oppose but pleaded that the matter be stood down as the lead counsel, Marshal Abubakar, was on his way.
However, Ogbobe opposed Isa’s application, citing Section 354 of the administration of criminal justice act, 2015, which stipulates that when parties are called, the court shall proceed to hear the matter.
He argued that, “The excuse is a calculated attempt to postpone the arraignment,” and asked the court to not take the defence seriously.
Meanwhile, Isa pleaded that the offences of the counsel should not be visited on the defendant, in the interest of justice.
However, Justice Abubakar indulged the prosecution counsel, and did not grant Isa’s application.
When Marshall Abubakar appeared in court, Justice Abubakar noted that in her records, he was absent from court, this was as she also declined the defense’ request to move the motion for bail.
Justice Abubakar subsequently ordered that Jalingo be remanded at the Kuje Medium Security Custodial Center, and adjourned the matter until March 30, for the court to take the bail application of the defendant.
Recall that Elizabeth Ayade, through her lawyer, Uyi Obayagbona, sent a letter to Jalingo in July 2022, seeking a retraction of an article that queried why a suspended staff of the University of Calabar, Paschal Aboh, was facing trial for allegedly impersonating a student of the Nigerian Law School, Abuja campus (Elizabeth Ayade), while the person (Elizabeth Ayade) who allegedly contracted him walks free.
Elizabeth demanded that an apology be published in two national dailies, including, but not limited to Facebook, Instagram, and “Cross River Watch”, as well as a payment of N500 million in damages.
Jalingo was also given a 14-day ultimatum to comply, otherwise legal proceedings will be instituted against him.
However, police operatives from the FCT command on August 19, 2022, stormed Jalingo’s Ogudu residence in Lagos state and arrested him, several hours after holding his wife and daughter hostage.
He was subsequently detained at the Alapere police station and later at Area F command in Ikeja before he was flown to Abuja the next day where it was revealed that Elizabeth Ayade had petitioned the police and accused Jalingo of defaming her character.
Jalingo was later released and was asked to return two days later, but was later told by the police to return back to Lagos since Elizabeth failed to show up at the FCT police command.
It is worth noting that a federal high court in Calabar, prior to this development, had dismissed terrorism, treasonable felony, and cybercrime charges filed against Jalingo by Ayade-led administration.
The presiding judge, Ijeoma Ojukwu, dismissed the charges against Jalingo after the Cross River state government withdrew the charges against him.
Jalingo was arrested in August 2019 for accusing Ben Ayade, of diverting N500 million belonging to the state for personal use
He was charged for terrorism, treasonable felony, and cybercrime, and incarcerated for about 179 days, despite global outrage against the government’s action.
Also, Amnesty International in Nigeria, in 2022, declared the journalist a prisoner of conscience and had accused the Nigerian government of manipulating the nation’s justice system against him.
Meanwhile, the journalist, while speaking after the court dismissed all the charges against him, noted that he always knew that the court would rule in his favour in the case.
“I knew from day one that I did not commit the offence, I knew it was just a matter of time for the court to throw the matter away,” Jalingo said.
“It’s just painful that our system is skewed in this manner where three years of my time has been wasted coming from Lagos to Calabar because of a sham trial,” he added.
Jalingo added that he was waiting for advice from his lawyers, whether to sue the government or not, even though he had told his wife he was leaving vengeance to God.
He further noted that there was pressure on him, while under incarceration, to write an apology letter to the Cross River government, which he refused.
Source: TheStreetJournal | Read More
