A Nigerian law practitioner and public affairs analyst named Tope Akinyode has disclosed his plans to file criminal charges against President Muhammadu Buhari’s aides and others who flouted the lockdown order by attending the crowded funeral of late Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari.
Taking to Twitter, Tope stated that poor Nigerians cannot be punished by full extent of the law while the rich go free when they commit similar offence.
He wrote:
Abba Kyari’s Burial: I’ll Institute Criminal Proceedings Against Garba Shehu @GarShehu, Bashir Ahmad @BashirAhmaad & Others. It will be recalled that Nigerians who violated the restriction of movement order of government over the ongoing pandemic have been arrested, arraigned, prosecuted & convicted accordingly.
In particular, a Nigerian, who having been battered & tortured of hunger, attempted a way of reasonable escape by putting his taxi to use for commercial purposes was arrested, arraigned & convicted within a day & without any access to a lawyer.
Even though the man stripped naked in a dehumanising manner to protest the frustration he was passing through, the Nigerian government could not forgive the gentleman. Instead, government hurriedly convicted him and same goes for other Nigerians.
However, on 19th April 2020, burial was organized for the remains of former Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari. During the process, participants violated the lockdown & movement restriction order of government & sundry regulations. Yet, they’ve not been brought to book.
Law must be equal to all. The poor cannot receive maximum punishment for an offence which the rich are pardoned for, otherwise, we will orchestrate a system of injustice and wickedness.
To that extent, I shall institute a criminal proceeding against every known person who violated exant regulations by attending Abba Kyari’s burial.
By virtue of Sections 77 (a) and 81 (1) of the Criminal Procedure Act, C42, LFN, 2004, I am empowered by law as a private citizen to institute criminal proceedings against any offender of law before the Magistrates Court without a fiat of the Attorney General.
Section 81(1) of the CPA provides thus: “Subject to the provisions of section 59 of this Act any person who believes from a reasonable or probable cause, that an offence has been committed by any person whose, appearance a magistrate has power to compel may make a, complaint thereof to a magistrate who shall consider the allegations of the complainant and may, in his discretion, refuse to issue process recording his reasons for such refusal, or may issue a summons or warrant as he shall deem fit to compel the attendance of the accused person before a magistrate’s court in the district”.
Against the foregoing, I shall institute criminal proceedings against the following persons:
1. Garba Shehu (Presidential Spokesperson)
2 Babagana Monguno (National Security Adviser, NSA),
3. Ambassador Lawal Kazaure (Chief Protocol Officer)
4 Yusuf Sabiu (a.k.a Tunde) Special Assistant to the President,
5 Musa Haro Daura, a nephew to the President
6 Mr. Ahmad Rufai (Director-General of National Intelligence Agency)
7 Bashir Ahmed (Personal Assistant on New Media to President Buhari) and others whose name I get
The complaint against the foregoing persons shall be filed before the Magistrate Court of the FCT in the course of this week.