Again, court rejects bid by Bamaiyi, others to stall trial
- Rabo-Lawal says: Find Ige's killers
By James Dadzie
AT last, the trial afresh of former Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Ishaya Bamaiyi and four others over the February 2, 1996 attempt on the life of The Guardian Newspapers publisher, Mr. Alex Ibru, began yesterday at an Ikeja High Court.
In attendance was the third accused person, Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, Chief Security Officer (CSO) to the late Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha. Al-Mustapha was moved from the Kirikiri Maximum Security Prisons, Lagos, by men from the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) three months ago and whisked to Abuja for alleged security breach.
After yesterday's session, one of the accused persons, Mohammed Rabo-Lawal, attempted to link the trial to the December 23, 2001 murder of former Attorney-General of the Federation, Chief James Ajibola Ige. He yelled: "Go and look for the killers of Bola Ige."
Al-Mustapha's appearance in court at about 11.00a.m. yesterday caused not only a stir, but also threw the premises into ecstasy.
Also facing the charges are former Zamfara State Military Administrator, Col. Jubrin Yakubu (rtd), former Lagos and Oyo States Police Commissioner, Mr. James Danbaba (rtd) and a serving Chief Superintendent of Police, Mohammed Rabo-Lawal.
Court workers abandoned their posts on hearing of Al-Mustapha's arrival and raced to the scene behind the courtroom of Justice Joseph Oyewole where Mustapha had arrived in an unmarked, ash colour Peugeot 504 salon car with tainted glass.
In the stampede by the co-suspects and members of the public to catch a glimpse of the former CSO, Danbaba fell on the ground on his buttocks and had to be helped up by sympathisers.
They broke the cordon formed by some 20 well armed, brown or dark suited security men who hemmed in Al-Mustapha besides another set of about 20 armed, anti-riot policemen in the premises.
The accused persons led by Bamaiyi, embraced and hailed Al-Mustapha who wore an ash colour gown and limped on the left leg.
The stern-looking security men warded off any one, including newsmen, who tried to go close to Al-Mustapha, who was rushed into the courtroom by the security men after they had managed to bring the situation under control.
The beginning of the trial came at the tail end of the day's proceedings. But, again, the accused persons, through their counsel, made spirited efforts to ensure that the trial did not take off.
Equal to the task however, was the trial judge, Justice Oyewole who resisted all the attempts by hearing and dismissing two applications for stay of proceedings.
The dismissal brought to nine, the number of applications brought by the accused persons since October 16, 2003 when Justice Oyewole took over from the former judge, Justice Augustine Ade-Alabi.
Justice Ade-Alabi withdrew from the case on September 16, 2003 after four years of trial following pressure mounted by the accused persons through various means, including the bringing of applications, which the prosecution described as frivolous, mischievous and calculated to delay the trial unnecessarily.
Justice Ade-Alabi dismissed about 25 such applications during the four years of trial.
One of the two applications heard and dismissed yesterday was brought by Al-Mustapha. Through his counsel, Mr. Olalekan Ojo, Al-Mustapha sought a stay of proceedings to enable him appeal against a ruling delivered by Justice Oyewole on March 29, 2004. In it, Justice Oyewole declined to order the DMI, the State Security Services (SSS) and other security agencies to make available to Al-Mustapha certain documents he claimed were seized from him by the former CSO in 1999, during investigations into the matter.
Besides, Ojo applied that the trial be adjourned for at least three weeks because he had not seen his client since he was removed by the DMI three months ago and that he needed to hold a pre-trial session with his client before trial.
The second application, which was brought by Bamaiyi through his client, Mr. Rickey Tarfa (SAN), was to stay proceedings to enable the Supreme Court determine his appeal against the refusal of the former judge, Justice Ade-Alabi, to quash the information against Bamaiyi.
In a brief ruling, Justice Oyewole held that the application was placed before the former judge and that on November 21, 2003, he ruled declining to stay proceedings.
"I do not see anything new, justifying a review of my position on this issue on November 21, 2003", he ruled.
Ruling on Al-Mustapha's application, Justice Oyewole said: "This is a matter of grave concern, especially where public interest is involved."
For this reason, Justice Oyewole declared that he would take the short evidence of the first prosecution - his name and address - so that the matter would be adjourned for Ojo to hold a pre-trial session with his client, Al-Mustapha.
The judge ordered the DMI and the SSS to ensure that Al-Mustapha have access to his lawyer for the purposes of the trial and for as long as he remained in their custody until the trial was disposed off.
After dismissing the two former applications, the court ordered the prosecution to call its first witness, Mr. David Udi.
Led in evidence by the leading prosecution counsel, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), Udi told the court that he worked with the Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island Lagos, as a security man. The examination went thus:
Where do you live
Presently, I live at Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos.
How long have you worked` with the Federal Palace Hotel
This is my ninth year.
When did you start working with the hotel
I started working in 1993.
At this stage, Justice Oyewole stopped the trial and adjourned till July 5, 2004.
As the accused persons were filing out of the dock, Rabo-Lawal yelled: "You cannot take me to the gallows. Go and look for the killers of Bola Ige. Is this why you brought me to court
