Renowned critic, retired Colonel Abubakar D. Umar, has faulted the trial judge in the alleged money laundering case involving a former Governor of Jigawa State, Alhaji Sule Lamido, and his two sons – Aminu and Mustapha.
The judge, Justice Evelyn Anyadike of the Federal High Court in Kano, on Thursday remanded Lamido and his sons in Kano Prisons until September 28 for the hearing of their bail application.
Umar described the decision as high-handed.
He said it amounted to the fact that the former governor and his sons have begun serving jail terms for an offence over which they are yet to be found guilty.
He said: “The offence for which Sule Lamido and his two sons were charged is clearly a clearly bailable offence. This is why it appears strange that not only were they refused bail but they are remanded in prison custody for about three months. This means that both Sule and his sons have started serving a prison sentence even before the commencement of their trial.”
Umar therefore called on Nigerians of good conscience to prevail on Justice Anyadike to have a rethink in not hearing the bail applications of Lamido and his sons.
He said further in the statement: “It behoves on all men of good conscience to appeal to the trial Judge to reconsider this high-handed decision. The principle of the accused being adjudged innocent until proven guilty must apply in this case.
“We are also aware that persons with similar cases had been granted and are being granted bail. We appeal to the trial judge to temper justice with mercy by granting Governor Sule Lamido and his sons bail.”
—