Court dismisses Yakubu's bail bid over attack on Ibru
James Dadzie
AN Ikeja High Court yesterday dismissed an application for bail brought by Col. Jubrin Yakubu, one of the five persons who have been standing trial since 1999 for attempting to murder the publisher of The Guardian Newspapers, Mr. Alex Ibru.
It was the seventh time that the new trial judge, Justice Joseph Oyewole who took over the trial of the case last October, dismissed what he has termed frivolous applications being brought by the accused persons to delay the trial.
The former judge, Justice Augustine Ade Alabi, during the four years of hearing, dismissed about 25 such applications till he withdrew from the case in September last year following enormous pressure mounted on him by the accused persons.
Yakubu, a former Zamfara State military administrator, has been standing trial alongside the former Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Ishaya Bamaiyi, Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, who was the Chief Security Officer to the late Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha. The others are a former Commissioner of Police, Mr. James Danbaba and a serving Chief Superintendent of Police, Mr. Muhammed Rabo-Lawal.
They are said to have committed the offence at Ikoyi in Lagos on February 2, 1996.
Ruling on Yakubu's application for bail yesterday, Justice Oyewole said the only special circumstance open to the applicant to make a case for bail was that the trial had lasted over four years; since 1999.
But Oyewole said the accused person could not avail himself of this circumstance since he played a part in the delay.
"An applicant seeking bail cannot be allowed to approbate and reprobate. He cannot turn round; he cannot turn round to deny his own action," he ruled.
Oyewole noted that Yakubu was not contesting the fact that the charge against him was severe and that prosecution witnesses were in protective custody.
"He is contesting the fact that having been in custody for four years, he should be granted bail, as provided for by section 35 (4) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria," he said.
Oyewole ruled that section 35(4) of the constitution relied on by Yakubu was not relevant to the instant case.
He also said that "delay as a special circumstance cannot avail the applicant; and that being the only circumstance, the application for bail is refused."
Adjourning the case to July 1, 2004 for the commencement of trial, Oyewole said: "This court is determined to grant this case accelerated hearing.
He urged all those concerned with the trial to get ready.
The leading prosecuting state counsel, Mrs. Olabisi Ogungbesan, told the court that Al-Mustapha was not in the custody of the prosecution and as such the defence could not use Mustapha's absence to blame the prosecution for the delay in the trial of the matter.
Al-Mustapha was recently removed from the Kirikiri Maximum Security Prison, Lagos, by men from the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) for alleged security breach.
He had been at Kirikiri Prison together with the other accused persons since 1999.
The court had since ordered the DMI to produce Al-Mustapha to stand his trial.
Ogungbesan told the court yesterday that it was on record that the prosecution had made every effort and was still making efforts to ensure that the third accused person, Al-Mustapha, was brought to court to stand trial.
Ogungbesan, who was opposing Yakubu's application for bail, told the court that it was ridiculous for the accused persons to turn around and complain about one delay in the trial "brought about by their numerous needless applications."
Urging the court to refuse Yakubu's bail, the prosecution said: "Some of our witnesses are in protective custody for fear of their lives. The fourth accused is a very high ranking military officer and also a former Military Administrator.
"There is no doubt that he has a lot of connections and influence outside. There is grave danger in releasing him on bail before the end of his trial."
Moving the application earlier, Yakubu's counsel, Mr. V. Ikegbule, said that his client had no criminal record whatsoever.
He said that there was no possibility that Yakubu would interfere with prosecution witnesses.
Ikegbule added: "The fourth accused is not a criminal; he has deposed to that fact and he is not likely, if released on bail, to commit the same offence again."
