The efforts by Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe to extricate himself as one of the sureties of the leader of the recently proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) group, Nnamdi Kanu, may have hit another brick-wall.
This is as the Federal Government has filed a counter-affidavit insisting Kanu is in the senator’s custody.
On October 17, co-defendants with Kanu, who are being prosecuted on charges of treasonable felony along him were produced in court by prison officials while the IPOB leader was absent.
Abaribe, who was one of his three sureties had then through his lawyer, Ogechi Ogunna, informed the court of his motion seeking to withdraw as Kanu’s surety.
The presiding judge in the matter, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court Abuja, had however said that she was not going to hear the motion until Abaribe first produced the missing defendant.
But the Federal Government in reply to Abaribe’s application filed a counter-affidavit and written address before the Federal High Court in Abuja insisting that Kanu is in the custody of Abaribe and described the senator’s motion as belated.
It therefore prayed the court to demand that Abaribe produces Kanu for the continuation of his trial, adding that he was aware that Kanu “has long violated the bail conditions handed down by this honourable court on April 24, 2017” before September 11 when the senator is alleging he lost contact with the defendant.
“That it was at this point at violating the conditions at the bail that the senator surety ought to surrender the 1st defendant and or bring up this application; “That this application is belated and ill-timed;
“The applicant failed to apply to the court timeously, stating on oath that the defendant bound by recognizance to appear before this court had violated the bail condition given by this court,” the counter-affidavit read in part.
“The applicant failed to apply to the court timeously, stating on oath that the defendant bound by recognizance to appear before this court had violated the bail condition given by this court,” the counter-affidavit read in part.
According to Shuaibu Labaran, the prosecuting counsel, Abaribe “failed woefully” by allegedly aiding and abetting Kanu to flout his bail conditions.
“My lord, the surety has failed woefully to abide by the terms of the contract he entered into with this court and therefore cannot claim frustration.
“My lord, we urge that the court hold, that surety having refused to do what he ought to have done pursuant to section 174 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 aided and abetted the 1st defendant in the flouting of the bail conditions of this court and should forfeit the bond he entered into,” he further stated in the written address.
The Federal Government in the counter-affidavit insisted that Kanu was not in the custody of the Nigerian Army.
It said that the “military activities in Abia State tagged ‘Operation Python Dance II’ was a routine exercise in its second year carried out by the military at the end of every year.
It said that the “military activities in Abia State tagged ‘Operation Python Dance II’ was a routine exercise in its second year carried out by the military at the end of every year.
“That the 1st defendant is not in the custody of the Nigerian military or any other security agency in that regard.
“That the 1st defendant is in custody of the applicant (Abaribe).”
“That the 1st defendant is in custody of the applicant (Abaribe).”
This is coming just as IPOB had on Sunday maintained that the Federal Government knew Kanu’s whereabouts and should produce him either dead or alive.
The group in a statement by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, claimed that President Muhammadu Buhari and some leaders in the South-East geopolitical zone have conspired to be silent on the issue.
“We are asking Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, Nnia Nwodo and South-East governors to produce Nnamdi Kanu because they or their representatives all participated in countless meetings in Abuja and Enugu where the modus operandi of the genocidal Operation Python Dance II was agreed and ratified.
“It was as a direct result of military invasion of the home of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and massacre of 28 innocent unarmed civilians with many missing that has led us to once again politely ask that our leader be presented to us dead or alive,” IPOB said.
