On Wednesday, Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja granted bail to 10 activists facing prosecution by the Federal Government in connection with the recent #Hunger and #EndBadGovernance protests.
In his ruling, the judge expressed his inclination to grant bail despite the serious charges against the defendants, including treason and mutiny.
However, the judge imposed a restriction, prohibiting the defendants from participating in any protests while their trial is ongoing.
The individuals granted bail are Michael Adaramoye, also known as Lenin, Adeyemi Abayomi, Suleiman Yakubu, Opaluwa Simon, Angel Innocent, Buhari Lawal, Mosiu Sadiq, Bashir Bello, Nurudeen Khamis, and Abduldalam Zubair.
The activists are facing six charges related to alleged treason, intent to destabilize Nigeria, conspiracy to commit a felony, and inciting mutiny, all of which are punishable under Section 97 of the Penal Code.
They are also accused of attempting to forcibly enter the seat of power, during which they allegedly set fire to a police station and assaulted police officers.
Additionally, the defendants have been charged with inciting the Nigerian populace against the government and causing damage to various public properties, including a police station, a high court complex, and facilities belonging to the National Communications Commission.
All 10 defendants in the case marked FHC/ABJ/CR/454/2024 pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against them by the Inspector General of Police.
In delivering his ruling on their bail applications on Wednesday, Justice Nwite stated that he was inclined to grant bail because the defendants/applicants have demonstrated in their evidence that they are merely protesters.
Justice Nwite concurred with the argument presented by the counsel for the first, second, and fourth defendants, Abubakar Marshal, stating that anyone charged with a criminal offense must be presumed innocent until proven guilty.
The judge said, “I have carefully considered the submission of the counsel on both divides. I hereby grant the defendant bail, notwithstanding the crime.
“The bail is hereby granted to the defendants’ applicant in the sum of N10m each and one surety in like sum.”
According to the judge, the sureties must be property owners based in Abuja who are willing to deposit the title documents with the court and must also provide an affidavit of means.
The judge further ordered that the defendants and their sureties are required to submit their passports, along with three recent passport photographs, to the court registrar.
However, the judge stated that the defendants would remain in prison custody until they fulfilled their respective bail conditions.
Justice Nwite also instructed the defendants not to engage in any public rallies or protests during their trial and set September 27 as the date for the trial to commence.
During the Wednesday hearing, Abubakar represented the first, second, and fourth defendants. Although he had previously represented the third defendant, he informed the court that the third defendant was no longer under his legal representation.
