67 DAYS WITHOUT BAIL

So, today makes it 67 days that Luka Binniyat has been locked up without bail. Yes! The case is even starting afresh at a state high court after the magistrate court. The papers had been served on Luka weeks back but a date for the hearing hasn’t been mentioned yet, nor a judge assigned to the case.

That’s not even the main issue now. It is the fact that, after several weeks in prison, he is being asked to apologize so that the charges against him could be dropped. Now, this is the issue for me.

On the 4th of November 2021 when he was arrested, he wasn’t given the option of apologizing, neither was Epoch Magazine, the paper Luka wrote the alleged defamatory report, told to apologize. Nothing like that was done. Now after taking him through Gabasawa police cell, Kakuri police cell, and the Kaduna prison, he is being asked to apologize. Once he apologizes then his ordeal would come to an end. So, is it because he has not apologized that he has spent 67 days today behind bars without bail? Doesn’t this hint at the abuse of power and manipulation of the justice system?

Come to think of it; how is he to apologize? Through Epoch magazine? But the medium through which the alleged report was made wasn’t even contacted to issue a retraction or apology.

Anyway, I am not saying Luka is guilty or not, that’s the role of the court, neither am I asking him to apologize or not, he is the one locked up in Kaduna prison and knows the decision to take. I am simply raising questions that border on legality, rule of law, and common sense.

You see this abuse of power eh, it doesn’t select. So don’t ever say you won’t advocate for rule of law because you would never be a victim. Life has a habit of throwing surprises at our most composed moments.

No be this country we dey?