“It is a common practice that absence of a co-accused will not constitute impediment to the progress of a case.”
, without a scratch on the handcuffed suspect, Bala Hamisu Wadume. Fortuitously, five other police officers in the vehicle were injured. Only the suspect survived the attack without a shrapnel touch. Assuming such Hollywood kind of precision was a fluke, what followed was even more bizarre. The suspect was freed from the handcuff against all logical reasoning and allowed to escape before he was re-arrested two weeks after by the police.
Following the conclusion of investigation and the bid to commence trial, the attorney general of the federation, Mr. Abubakar Malami allegedly took over the process from Taraba State government and dropped the names of the indicted soldiers.
“It is a common practice that absence of a co-accused will not constitute impediment to the progress of a case. Those available are entitled to fair trial and have their case determined within a reasonable time as a matter of Constitutional rights. More so, looking at the fact that the accused persons, who are available, are not responsible for the unavailability of their co-accused persons,” the AGF stated.
“It is therefore outrageous for him to misuse his office in the mutilation of the defendants’ list without any explanation. It means that he holds the public in contempt. The facts of the Wadume case are in the public domain. The expectations of the public are today damaged by the removal of the military men from the list.
Senior legal officer, Human Rights Law Services , Mr. Collins Okeke, said it is difficult to determine the interest of the AGF in the matter. “I want to assume it is in public interest and interest of justice as provided by 1999 Constitution. The trial involves two important security agencies, the Nigerian Army and the Nigerian Police.
Also, Access to Justice said it is concerned about the takeover, by the AGF of the prosecution of Wadume, Capt. Balarabe and 18 others allegedly indicted in the acts of homicide and kidnapping. The AGF, it admitted has powers under the Constitution to take over and even terminate criminal proceedings undertaken against anyone, in the public interest.
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