Akwa Ibom State-based human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, has denied ever insulting the Akwa Ibom State High Court or the Chief Judge of the state, Justice Ekaette Obot, for him to have been sentenced to one month imprisonment.
The Eagle Online recalls that the lawyer, who was jailed one month ago by the CJ, regained his freedom on Friday.
Speaking in a statement after he regained his freedom, Effiong said: “I say it as a child of God that I never at any time pointed my hand at the Honourable Chief Judge of Akwa Ibom. I never at any time banged the table. I never at any time shouted at the court. These accusations only came to me while I was in incarceration.
“The Honourable Chief Judge of Akwa Ibom whose office I respect knows in her conscience that I never acted in any insolent manner. I never disrespected the court.
“All I did on the 27th of July when I announced my appearance along with my colleague Augustine Asuquo to defend my client Leo Ekpenyong was simply to raise two fundamental observations; that I feel that every judicial officer with profound respect and that every legal practitioner in this country should pay attention to. When I arrived the court, My Lord had announced clearly that today His Lordship is coming in with anger and that the court will not tolerate any nonsense from anybody. And because we knew the antecedence of this matter, we have always accorded the court absolute respect.
“Even before we announced appearances, My Lord ordered the (police) orderly to invite into the courtroom two armed Mobile Policemen. I am not against policemen being within the court. I want to be understood clearly because the judiciary cannot function without the aid of the police. The police are an integral part of the administration of justice.
“And then, I reminded the court when the policemen arrived that My Lord there is a pending application for recusal urging My Lord to disqualify himself from this case on grounds of bias or likelihood of bias which application we filed on the 23rd day of June, 2022. And of course as it has been, My Lord shouted me down and I rested the issue and said the court will take that application whenever the court deems fit.
“And of course, My Lord ordered that the continuation of cross examination should continue and a certain witness for the Governor, one Richard Peter, that is the name he gave the court, entered the dock and I started cross examination. I was on about the second or third question when My Lord furiously, and I say that with all sense of respect to the court, ordered a certain Saviour (Imukudo), a reporter with Premium Times to stand up and he stood up and My Lord asked him ‘who are you’ and he said he was an observer.
“My Lord said who are you to observe the court, are you a party to this case? He said no My Lord, I am journalist. My Lord asked, are you a government journalist? And he said ‘no, I work with Premium Times.’
“Hell was let loose. What I witnessed was unprecedented in my young and little years, for the eight years I have been practicing as a lawyer. My Lord ordered his phone to be seized and the policemen to take him away.
“I stood up, I did not confront court. I said My Lord, with profound respect, section thirty six of the constitution guarantees publicity of trial and provides that court proceedings shall be held in public. I was not even shouting at the court, I was urging My Lord. I said My Lord, I had thought that in view of that constitutional provision that members of the public including journalists should be free to access the court and observe proceedings and of course, My Lord didn’t accept that.
“Maybe, that was my offence, I did not give up. I still urged the court and then My Lord said except you are the one who brought him to tarnish my hard earned reputation. I so the issue had become personal so I rested.
“I was about to start my cross examination and I turned back, again I saw two armed policemen with AK 47, one to my right, one to my left. This had created so much hostility and I said My Lord I have also observed the presence of two armed policemen in court. I said, My Lord, even though I am ordinarily not intimidated by their presence but by their being here with arms seated behind me they have created hostility in the court which has made it uncomfortable for me and difficult for me to proceed with the proceedings and I pleaded with the court to excuse them. My Lord didn’t accept our plea.
“Again, maybe that was my offence. I did not give up because I have a duty as a lawyer to defend the course of justice.”
Narrating his ordeal in court further, Effiong said; I said My Lord, respectfully I am now making it as a formal application in which case Your Lordship would have to render a decision and I said however, if Your Lordship overrules me I would be bound by the order of the court and I would proceed with my cross examination. At that point, My Lord picked a pen, My Lord started writing.
“You know as a lawyer when you are addressing the court and the court is writing you are excited that the court is taking note of what you are saying. Unknown to me, I thought My Lord was writing what I was saying not knowing it was my committal order to prison. The next thing I heard was ‘you there, step out of the bar’. I stepped out of the bar. I did not fight. And then my Lord said derobe yourself and I must also say again I did not derobe immediately.
“I must place the record as it is because I cannot derobe as a lawyer in court if I don’t know the reason why I should derobe. It is like taking away my Call-to-Bar certificate. I said My Lord if I derobe I can no longer address the court as a counsel. My Lord said ‘you are no longer a lawyer, I no longer recognize you because I am sending you to prison’.
“I didn’t believe it. The next thing my Lord did was to read what My Lord had already written ‘you are hereby sentenced to one month imprisonment, to be remanded at the Correction Centre until you purge yourself of contempt.’
“All I have told you is what that transpired. So, those who say Inibehe does not know how to say ‘As the Court pleases’, Inibehe was disrespecting the court, these are lies. And I say that on my honour. And I’m using this opportunity to publicly urge and appeal to My Lord the Honourable Chief Judge of Akwa Ibom State, My Lord the Honourable Justice Ekaette Fabian Obot to please release the Close Circuit Television (CCTV) camera of that day. Because I am told, I am aware to the best of my knowledge that there is CCTV inside that courtroom, My Lord the Chief Judge’s court.
“Let all lawyers in Nigeria see when Inibehe pointed at the Honourable Chief Judge. Let them also see when Inibehe banged at the table. Even if I was the most insolent lawyer in Nigeria, you do not have to scandalize my name and attribute to me a conduct that never took place in court just to justify what is clearly unjustifiable.
“I can announce to you that I have taken steps to secure the release of 17 inmates at the Uyo Custodial Centre, in fact one left last night. The others would have come but the authorities were concerned that people were gathering too much so I couldn’t wait. I was supposed to come out without with them. We had to spend significant and substantial amount of money to make that happen. These are people that were admitted to bail at Magistrate Courts, they had nobody to take them on bail.
“In fact, the young man who left yesterday was admitted to bail, subsequently his charge was struck out, the court did not come to inform the Custodial Centre. He was just there. It was until the person I asked to go and perfect his bail went to court yesterday, that when they now came to secure his release. This is someone that had no business being in detention but this shows you how bad the system is.
“So, the remaining 17 I am hopeful that before the end of today they will be out. And I am doing that to also let people know that the Criminal Justice system in Akwa Ibom and Nigeria as a whole needs to be revisited. There are a lot of innocent people that are there. The society may condemn all of them as criminals but if there was any doubt that I had as a lawyer that innocent people can be sentenced, by my experience I am now a witness of truth. By my own experience having been sent to prison with no offence disclosed, without any misconduct, then there are innocent people there.
“Well, the prison life is what I have always been prepared for. That is why I laugh at those who were celebrating my incarceration. I have always been prepared. I knew this was inevitable because you do not consistently fight those who are oppressing our people and you do not expect to be incarcerated.
“Life in the prison is a different life entirely. These are the abandoned citizens of Nigeria. They have been abandoned by the Federal Government of Nigeria. They have been abandoned by the Akwa Ibom State Government. As a matter of fact, I have also undertaken to take up cases of some of the inmates and in the coming days, you will get to learn of some of these pathetic cases.”