The Nigerian police on Wednesday arraigned a factional national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Kabir Turaki, for submitting a petition with false claims three and a half years ago.
Mr Turaki, a lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), was arraigned before the Federal Capital (FCT) High Court in Abuja.
He pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The judge Peter Kekemeke granted Mr Turaki bail in the sum of N100 million after he was arraigned.
Mr Turaki previously drew the ire of the judge, who ordered his arrest for his absence from court on 26 March, stalling his trial.
The arrest warrant, although eventually not executed, was in place until 1 April when the judge withdrew it following an appeal from Mr Turaki’s lawyer, Chris Uche, who is also a SAN.
In his ruling on Mr Turaki’s bail application on Wednesday, Mr Kekemeke, noted that the politician appeared in court before the arrest warrant was executed.
Dismissing the prosecution’s objection, the judge held that the prosecution fail to offer sufficient reasons to deny Mr Turaki bail.
Mr Turaki’s lawyer, Abdulaziz Ibrahim, also a SAN, argued during the hearing of the bail application on Wednesday that his client was entitled to bail under Section 163 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA).
He added that contrary to the prosecution’s view, Mr Turaki did not evade service of the charges as he was out of town when the prosecution sought to serve him.
He said the defendant appeared in court on 1 April, the day the court lifted the arrest warrant against him, and apologized for his absence on 26 March, when he was initially billed for arraignment.
The lawyer urged the court to grant Mr Turaki bail on self-recognisance. He assured the court that the defendant, as an elder statesman, a former minister, and a respected community leader with various chieftaincy titles, would not jump bail.
The prosecution lawyer, Usman Rabiu, opposed the bail application, citing section 162 of ACJA, which he said should guide the judge’s decision.
He urged the court to reject Mr Turaki’s bail application and remand him in a custodial facility pending hearing and determination of the case.
But the judge, overruling the prosecution, granted Mr Turaki bail in the sum of N100million with one surety.
The surety, according to the judge, must be an SAN with not less than 20 years of practice or a lawyer with over 40 years of practice.
He then adjourned the case until June 11 for hearing.
Wednesday’s proceedings coincided with the Supreme Court’s hearing of an appeal on the leadership dispute of the PDP, in which Mr Turaki is a key figure.
Mr Turaki and his group lodged their appeal at the Supreme Court seeking recognition as the authentic executives of the party that has been severely fractured by leadership crisis.
The Supreme Court said after hearing lawyers’ arguments on Wednesday that the judgement date would be later communicated to the parties to the dispute.
Police charged Mr Turaki with giving false information to the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) through a petition dated 5 October 2022.
The prosecution accused him of writing the petition against one Saidi Mainasara with intent to use the lawful power of Inspector-General of Police to harm and annoy Mr Mainasara, the subject of the complaint.
The offence, according to the prosecution, is punishable under Section 140 of the Penal Code Law.
Turaki, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge when read to him in the open court on Wednesday.
Following his not-guilty plea, the prosecution counsel, Usman Rabiu, asked the court to give a date for commencement of trial, which the judge set for 11 June.
