A prominent civil Rights advocacy group -: HUMAN RIGHTS
WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has asked the hierarchy of the
Department of State Services (DSS) to comply with extant court orders and free
Omoyele Sowere and Olawale Bakare on bail with immediate effect.
In a statement by the national coordinator Comrade
Emmanuel Onwubiko and the media affairs director Miss Zainab Yusuf, HURIWA
stated that the ongoing violation of the binding bail orders issued by a
competent courts of law is a gross violation of the constitution with reference
to section 6 which affirms that: “(1) The judicial powers of the Federation
shall be vested in the courts to which this section relates, being courts
established for the Federation. (2) The judicial powers of a State shall be
vested in the courts to which this section relates, being courts established,
subject as provided by this Constitution, for a State. (3) The courts to which
this section relates, established by this Constitution for the Federation and
for the States, specified in subsection (5) (a) to (1) of this section, shall
be the only superior courts of record in Nigeria; and save as otherwise
prescribed by the National Assembly or by the House of Assembly of a State,
each court shall have all the powers of a superior court of record. (4) Nothing
in the foregoing provisions of this section shall be construed as precluding:-
(a) the National Assembly or any House of Assembly from establishing courts,
other than those to which this section relates, with subordinate jurisdiction
to that of a High Court; (b) the National Assembly or any House of Assembly,
which does not require it, from abolishing any court which it has power to
establish or which it has brought into being. (5) This section relates to:- (a)
the Supreme Court of Nigeria; (b) the Court of Appeal; (c) the Federal High
Court; (d) the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; (e) a High
Court of a State (f) the Sharia Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital
Territory, Abuja; (g) a Sharia Court of Appeal of a State; (h) the Customary
Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; (i) a Customary Court
of Appeal of a State; (j) such other courts as may be authorized by law to
exercise jurisdiction on matters with respect to which the National Assembly
may make laws; and (k) such other court as may be authorized by law to exercise
jurisdiction at first instance or on appeal on matters with respect to which a
House of Assembly may make laws. (6) The judicial powers vested in accordance
with the foregoing provisions of this section - (a) shall extend,
notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this constitution, to all inherent
powers and sanctions of a court of law (b) shall extend, to all matters between
persons, or between government or authority and to any persons in Nigeria, and
to all actions and proceedings relating thereto, for the determination of any
question as to the civil rights and obligations of that person; (c) shall not
except as otherwise provided by this Constitution, extend to any issue or
question as to whether any act of omission by any authority or person or as to
whether any law or any judicial decision is in conformity with the Fundamental
Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy set out in Chapter II of
this Constitution; (d) shall not, as from the date when this section comes into
force, extend to any action or proceedings relating to any existing law made on
or after 15th January, 1966 for determining any issue or question as to the
competence of any authority or person to make any such law.”
“We urge the international community not to stand by and
watch as government agencies in Nigeria defecate on the Nigerian constitution
which is the supreme law on which constitutional democracy is anchored. The
consequences of allowing government officials in Nigeria to continue to breach
the constitution with reckless abandon is that anti-democratic forces and
reactionary elements may be emboldened to unleash anarchy and impunity on a
grand scale which will inevitably threaten national security interest. It is in
the enlightened national security interest that all agencies of government are
compelled by institutions such as the National Assembly to obey the laws of the
land so as to stave off imminent collapse of constitutional democracy.”
HURIWA recalled that Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of Federal
High Court in Abuja on Monday reviewed the bail conditions earlier granted to
the publisher of Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore.
The court on October 4 granted bail of N100 million to Mr.
Sowore and and his co-accused, Olawale Bakare, N50 million.
Her Lordship Ojukwu it would be recalled said Mr. Sowore
should produce two sureties in like sum even as the other aspects are that of that
amount, N50 million was to be deposited with the court while the balance was to
be put in place should Mr. Sowore jump bail.
The court said Mr. Sowore’s sureties must deposit tax
clearance certificates for three years, 2016 to 2018, and documents of landed
properties in Abuja.
The sureties were also to deposit affidavit of means for
their assets.
The court ruled that when released after meeting his
bail conditions, Mr Sowore should remain in Abuja till the case is determined
while his co-accused, Olawale Bakare, should not leave his place of residence
in Osogbo except for the trial.
The court also said Mr. Bakare should present one surety
and a bail bond of N50 million.
HURIWA recalled that however that on Monday, Justice
Ojukwu said the court has right to grant bail and may review it if necessary.
She set aside the N50 million security deposits by one
of the sureties and also reduced the N50 million bail of the second defendant,
Mr Bakare.
The activist and publisher of Saharareporters Mr.
Sowore, who was arrested on August 3 by Nigeria’s State Security Service (SSS)
for planning a protest popularized with the hashtag #RevolutionNow, was granted
bail for the second time on Friday.
A previous bail granted the defendant on September 24
was not complied with by the SSS.
The two accused are facing trial on seven counts of
treasonable felony, fraud, cyber-stalking and insulting President Muhammadu
Buhari.
HURIWA reminded the DSS that there are plethora of
judgments of the Supreme court that deprecate the executive acts of wanton
disrespect to binding orders of Justice just as Justice Kayode Eso then of the
supreme court of Nigeria had ruled that: ‘I think it is a very serious matter
for anyone to flout a positive order of a court and proceed to taunt the court
while still in contempt of the lower court. It is more serious when the act of
flouting the order of the court, the contempt of the court, is by Executive…I
think, for one organ, and more especially the Executive, which holds all the
physical powers, to put up itself in sabotage or deliberate contempt of the
other is to stage an executive subversion of the constitution it is to uphold.
Executive lawlessness is tantamount to a deliberate violation of the
constitution…. To use force to effect an act while under the marshal of that
force, seek the court’s equity, is an attempt to infuse timidity into court and
operate a sabotage of the cherished rule of law. It must never be.”
HURIWA has therefore demanded the immediate compliance
of the lawful orders of the Court unless and except we are now been told that
the Nigerian Constitution has been suspended and/or if Nigeria is under a
military dictatorship.
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