No bail, no lawyers as courts send 1,423 protesters to prison

The 10-day #EndBadGovernance protests may have ended, but the fallout will continue to be with us for some time to come.

For instance, several protesters arrested in some states, mainly in the North, have been charged to court and remanded in prison pending their trial which may not commence anytime soon, going by the delay in trial which has characterized our courts.

Consequently, they are now ‘prisoners-awaiting-trial’.

The arraignment is in line with the law which provides that a suspect must be arraigned in court within 48 hours of arrest, but there is no evidence to suggest that the #EndBadGovernance protesters had legal presentation during the arraignment as it ordinarily should be.

It was not clear also whether their pleas were taken, and, worse still, there was no bail for them.

For instance, the police confirmed that none of the 600 of the 832 protesters arrested in Kano State and charged to court had the opportunity for bail as they were all sent to prison pending the next hearing of their case.

The situation is nearly the same in Plateau State where 51 suspects were arrested and charged to court without legal representation and bail.

The police, however, confirmed that a lawyer called in respect of one of the suspects but did not elaborate.

The next adjourned dates for the cases of the protesters could not be confirmed but if the case of those charged in Plateau is used as a yardstick, then they may have to remain in prison custody for at least the next one month.

The Plateau protesters’ case was adjourned to September 18 and 19, that is, about one month away.
The situation in Katsina State is different where out of the 120 protesters arrested and charged to court, 64 were represented by lawyers and bail successfully secured for 30.

The remaining 90 protesters were remanded in prison but the lawyers who represented the 64 were upbeat about freedom for the rest of their clients (34) as soon as possible.

Many of the 110 protesters arrested on the first and second days of the protests in Sokoto metropolis are, according to sources, still languishing in correctional homes.

The suspects were summarily remanded in prison custody after being presented by the police before a mobile court set up the state government.

Suspects arrested later, and who were supposed to be presented to court on Thursday, were not in seen in any of the magistrate courts in the state capital.

11 states

Sunday Vanguard’s survey across 11 states showed that 1, 423 suspected protesters were arrested by the police and charged to court.

Those accused of flying Russia’s flag among them, it was learnt, have been flown to Abuja for further interrogation.

Kano tops the list with 832 suspects, followed by Sokoto, 110, Borno, 97, Katsina, 90, Bauchi, 60, Plateau and Yobe, 51 each, Kaduna, 50, Nasarawa, 40, Niger, 23, and Zamfara, 19.

The charges vary from state to state and they include criminal conspiracy, inciting disturbance, riot, theft, mischief and arson.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), which had vowed ahead of the protests to provide legal aid to arrested protesters whose rights may have been violated, did not show up in any of the courts in all the states where arraignment took place.

Mr Chinonye Obiagwu, SAN, Chairman, NBA Human Rights Institute and Member, NBA Free Legal Support Team for #EndBadGovernance protesters, however, said the association was intervening on behalf of some protesters in Abuja who were harassed and brutalized at the MKO Abiola Stadium, the venue designated for the protests, by security forces, saying a suit was being filed in court on their behalf.

“The branches of the NBA were mandated to provide legal assistance to anyone arrested or whose human rights were violations during the protest”, Mike told Sunday Super plus TV News late last week.

“There were a number of reports from the branches about support provided to diverse range of people. Most of the cases are still going on and so the data have not been collated at the central NBA level.

“This was the stadium the court designated as the approved place for the protests, yet they were beaten and harassed by law enforcement agents in the same venue.

“So, the NBA Human Rights Institute intervened and some of the molested protesters are filing a suit to challenge the denial of their right to peaceful protests.”

The protests took place nationwide from August 1 to August 10.

Tagged #EndBadGovernance protests, it was organized by youth groups to call government’s attention to the downturn in the economy and the hunger in the land.

The protests were largely peaceful in Abuja and Lagos, among others, where government obtained court orders to restrict demonstrations to designated venues.

But in many states, especially in the northern part of the country, the protests took a violent turn as hoodlums came in, leading to loss of lives and destruction of property.

The police called many of the arrested persons ‘rioters’ but some of them disputed the claim, saying they were protesters

Additionally, the protests turned to pro-Russia rallies in Kano, Kaduna and Katsina states, among others, as demonstrators carried Russian flags in a manner suggesting they want Nigeria to turn to Russia in search of solution to her challenges.