The aftermath of an already concluded 10-day #EndBadGovernance protests has left many wondering as several protesters who were arrested in some states, mainly in the North, have been charged to court and remanded in prison pending their trial which may not commence anytime soon. Consequently, they are now ‘prisoners-awaiting-trial’.
The arraignment is in line with the law which provides that a suspect must be arraigned in court within 48 hours of arrest, but there is no evidence to suggest that the #EndBadGovernance protesters had legal presentation during the arraignment as it ordinarily should be.
According to Vanguard report, It was not clear also whether their pleas were taken, and, worse still, there was no bail for them.
For instance, the police confirmed that none of the 600 of the 832 protesters arrested in Kano State and charged to court had the opportunity for bail as they were all sent to prison pending the next hearing of their case.
The situation is nearly the same in Plateau State where 51 suspects were arrested and charged to court without legal representation and bail.
The police, however, confirmed that a lawyer called in respect of one of the suspects but did not elaborate.
The next adjourned dates for the cases of the protesters could not be confirmed but if the case of those charged in Plateau is used as a yardstick, then they may have to remain in prison custody for at least the next one month.
The Plateau protesters’ case was adjourned to September 18 and 19, that is, about one month away.
The situation in Katsina State is different where out of the 120 protesters arrested and charged to court, 64 were represented by lawyers and bail successfully secured for 30.
The remaining 90 protesters were remanded in prison but the lawyers who represented the 64 were upbeat about freedom for the rest of their clients (34) as soon as possible.
Many of the 110 protesters arrested on the first and second days of the protests in Sokoto metropolis are, according to sources, still languishing in correctional homes.
The suspects were summarily remanded in prison custody after being presented by the police before a mobile court set up the state government.
Suspects arrested later, and who were supposed to be presented to court on Thursday, were not in seen in any of the magistrate courts in the state capital.
Vanguard’s survey across 11 states showed that 1, 423 suspected protesters were arrested by the police and charged to court.
Those accused of flying Russia’s flag among them, it was learnt, have been flown to Abuja for further interrogation.
Kano tops the list with 832 suspects, followed by Sokoto, 110, Borno, 97, Katsina, 90, Bauchi, 60, Plateau and Yobe, 51 each, Kaduna, 50, Nasarawa, 40, Niger, 23, and Zamfara, 19.
The charges vary from state to state, and they include criminal conspiracy, inciting disturbance, riot, theft, mischief and arson.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), which had vowed ahead of the protests to provide legal aid to arrested protesters whose rights may have been violated, did not show up in any of the courts in all the states where arraignment took place. Vanguard.
