Chairman, Nigerian Bar Association Section on Public Interest and Development Law, Monday Ubani, talks to BABATUNDE TITILOLA Of Punch Newspapers on the arrest and detention of an undergraduate, Aminu Muhammed, who made a social media post that the First Lady, Aisha Buhari, was feeding fat on the wealth of the masses
Does the law permit a public figure or anybody for that matter to order the arrest and detention of a citizen?
What the person will do is to report to the police when they feel that someone has done something wrong against them. But in the case of the President’s wife and an Internet user, from the evidence we have gathered so far, I don’t think there was any mention of a police station where this matter was reported. I am not sure there was any. The allegation was that the security team of the First Lady carried out the act. Maybe it was later that they decided to give it some level of legality by dumping the boy at the police station. We could remember that the police initially denied having him in their custody. Their initial statement was also that they were not aware of such an arrest. If the student was properly remanded, why would the police and the DSS deny it? It was later that we got to know that it was the police that were prosecuting him for the offence through a lawyer from the Nigeria Police Force; the victim (Aminu Muhammed) was not charged under the Cyber Crime Law; he was charged under the Penal Code.
Was the statement made by the boy derogatory in terms of public morality and from a legal perspective?
Since they did not charge him under the cyber crime law, then there is no cyber bullying. If he was charged under the penal code, the question would be whether what he said was a lie or the truth. He said Mrs Aisha Buhari was feeding fat on Nigeria’s money. Now that she turned it into an issue, she ought to have told us which company or factory she had been working with for the past seven years. She has to show us her picture when she came in as the wife of the President and her present picture to know if she is not actually enjoying herself. Let us also know her accessories before she became the wife of the President.
Her picture shows she is really enjoying unless she can tell us otherwise. Let us know how many months she stayed in Dubai before she became the wife of the President. She is bringing it out as an issue; so, we need to examine her. She must also print out her account statements before becoming the President’s wife and after she became the First Lady. I have told them that the best thing was to release the young man. If he were to be convicted without a proper trial, we would go on appeal and that would paint her in a bad light. And if a trial had gone on, she would have come to the witness box for cross-examination.
It was alleged that the boy was tortured. Is it right for a high public figure like the First Lady to make such an order?
It was an allegation. I commissioned somebody to meet the boy where he was in Suleja prison. Let us get the full facts before we make any conclusions. They said he was still wearing his pyjamas when he was abducted from the hostel. The other students were not even aware when the operation was carried out. It was him who called one of his friends that he was in Bauchi and that he would explain the situation when he returned.
It was learnt that the boy was arraigned and remanded in a correctional facility. Many people condemned such a court hearing. Was the arraignment valid in any sense of the law?
It was a secret arraignment. There was no access to a lawyer because I don’t think his lawyer was aware. There was no access to his relatives. Nobody was aware when he was charged. Who did they serve? The law says every accused person must be given every necessary facility and resource to defend themselves. It’s a constitutional requirement. Every accused person must be given everything he requires for his defence, including access to his lawyer that will defend him.
If you kept someone incommunicado and suddenly you realised that you needed to charge him, and you secretly arraigned him, have you granted him the opportunity to defend himself properly? Did you grant him access to his lawyer? Did you provide one for him and was that lawyer the lawyer of his choice? The law provides that the lawyer should be of his choice.
Social media, especially Twitter, is one of the avenues for citizens to air their opinions and criticism against political leaders and public office holders. Would you say there have not been negative remarks and judgements passed on underperforming leaders in times past?
There are more derogatory statements made against previous leaders and their wives. There are a lot of derogatory statements made against the current President and former President Goodluck Jonathan. They abused Mrs Jonathan more than any other First Lady. Nigerians abused the wives of (Olusegun) Obasanjo, (Sani) Abacha, the late (Umaru) Yar’adua, and even some current governors. Some world leaders were even attacked like the French President, Emmanuel Macron, and others who were pelted with eggs. A public officer will be a target of attack, especially when they are not doing well. People will be angry. In her (Aisha Buhari) case, you can see in the picture that her wrist was protesting against the wristwatch because it was tight. It means, according to the young man (Muhammed), she added some weight. It is not an abuse. It shows that the President is feeding his wife very well. It shows that she is eating well. What the young man is saying is that it is our budget and taxpayers’ money that is making her look like that.
More so, if the statement came from a political opponent, I think she would say it was all for a political purpose. But this is a young man, who is a student and felt the people were suffering while the leaders were looking good. Although the student supported the killing of Deborah Samuel, that will not stop us from defending him. His rights have been violated. By supporting the killing of Deborah, he was supporting evil, but we won’t allow evil to come to him. Everyone is equal and we don’t care whether you are Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa, Muslim or Christian. Our defence for human rights is universal. Whether you are a rich man or poor man, your rights must be defended.
Will you consider this action by the First Lady as a clampdown on the freedom of speech and expression?
It is clearly a violation of the young man’s freedom. And if it is proven that the boy was assaulted, then that is also wrong and criminal, and there are legal consequences for that. Happily, we are not under military rule, so she can be sued.
What should the First Lady have done if she felt offended by the social media post of the student?
She should have reported to the police if she felt offended and the police would have invited the young man to interview him. If the offence was indictable, then they should have charged him appropriately, and grant him an audience with his lawyer. You should not abduct and keep him incommunicado for about two weeks. He was arrested on the 18th of November, but it was not until the 28th of the same month that people got to know. The law says you can’t detain someone for more than 24 hours. On what premises did his detention take place? The young man has the right to sue for a violation of his human rights. I went to court when I was detained for 21 days and the court ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to pay me N12m for illegal detention. The student can also sue the police and the First Lady.
Against a public officer, the citizens are often powerless. How will you advise the student’s parents to react on this matter?
She is not even a public officer. She is just the wife of the President. She was not elected or appointed. She has no right to utilise the Nigeria Police Force, and the DSS shouldn’t also get involved. The case should have been treated as that of an ordinary citizen. That she is enjoying police protection is because she is the wife of the President and not because any constitutional provision allows such to be accorded her.
The country has often witnessed instances of media repression and unlawful arrests by members of the government who do not entertain criticisms, especially from the media. What will you say is the position and strength of the Nigerian constitution to safeguard human rights against this form of oppression?
The constitution is very clear. Apart from freedom of expression, the constitution even went further to give additional responsibility under Chapter 2 that the media has the right to educate and inform. Any repression is clearly illegal. The press must be given the freedom to operate in a democracy. It is a crucial ingredient of democracy. But these laws haven’t been obeyed. Several governments have repressed press freedom, and Nigeria is not an exception. It is a problem all over the world, but there are some countries where it is worse. In Nigeria, it is worse as we have instances of repression and even killings. Over the last few years, journalists have been jailed and even killed in very mysterious circumstances.
Now that we have social media, the government is still trying to repress press freedom. Some state governors and their aides have been guilty of this. We have emperor governors all over the country. In this instance, the wife of the President has joined the list of those repressing freedoms in the country.
The citizens have often questioned the justice system as most times slow and inaccessible to the common man. In the current instance, a judge and the court were part of the process that remanded the boy. How will you qualify the justice system in this case?
Most times, the Nigerian justice system tends to favour those who are in positions of power and the rich. It is evident. Recently, the EFCC chairman was convicted by the court, but he was never arrested or sent to prison. What we heard was that the court set aside the order. The IG has also been convicted but he is yet to be arrested or taken to prison. But see how this young man was taken from Dutse to Bauchi and from there, he found himself in Abuja, and to prison. It shows that there is something wrong with our justice system. It shows that the justice system oppresses the poor, but does not touch the rich. How do we justify the fact that the IG and the EFCC chairman are not in prison, but this young man was imprisoned? It is clearly wrong, unjust and repugnant to justice and natural conscience. It also does not conform to best international practices.
What correction do you think can be made in this case to protect the face of justice in the country and beyond?
The justice system must be up and doing. There is no reason for the magistrate or whoever presided over the case not to insist on legal representation for the student. If he was actually charged, it is a bailable offence. A lawyer drafted the charge, who did he serve? So, something is wrong with the system. The Administration of Criminal Justice Act enacted in 2015 makes provisions for most of these things that are happening now. There are provisions against unlawful arrest, detention, secret trials and others, but the operators are not complying with the law. They are operating in disobedience of the law.
Now that Muhammed has been released, what is your reaction to the whole matter?
It was clearly a show of power and it shows how our leaders think and react. They always think that people have no right to criticise them or hold opinions against them. They arrested him and didn’t charge him until it got to the knowledge of the public. They decided to charge him after the voice of Nigerians was aired. It shows that it is difficult for a poor man to fight a big man in Nigeria, especially when you are fighting against the wife of the President. It will look as if you are fighting the President and his family.
If the first lady says she has forgiven the young man, what about the case that is in court? What do you think will be his condition after his release?
Although she withdrew the case and the matter was struck out, but the truth is that the victim was traumatised and still is. According to the information we gathered, when he came out of prison, they took him to Aso Rock to see the President. After they took him to the President, he came out later apologising to the woman. This means he has been intimidated by the woman. They must have said or done something that will intimidate him to make that kind of statement. We cannot speculate on what exactly they used on him. But we see that what the young man did was to come out and publicly apologise. Him apology was clearly unnecessary, because they were supposed to be the one to apologise to him. Look at the manner of his abduction and it was also alleged that he was tortured. So, he has really gone through a lot. He has suffered emotionally and psychologically.
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