Lawyer accused of defaming Uzodimma still in prison despite bail
A former secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Owerri branch, Chinedu Agu, accused of defaming Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State, is still being held at Owerri correctional facility, despite a bail granted him by a Federal High Court.
On Wednesday, Mr Agu’s lawyer, Stanley Imo, disclosed this to PREMIUM TIMES.
This newspaper earlier reported that the Federal High Court in Owerri, Imo State, had granted bail to Mr Agu, a lawyer, on 25 September.
Mr Imo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, said that all the bail conditions were perfected, but they could not secure Mr Agụ’s release from the correctional facility.
Why the lawyer is not yet out
Mr Imo said that the bail granted to the lawyer by the Federal High Court was directed to the police in Imo and not to the correctional centre.
He said the Federal High Court ordered the police to release Mr Agu, unaware that a Magistrate Court in Owerri also ordered the lawyer’s remand in prison.
“Before we could meet him (Mr Agu) in the magistrate court, the police had taken and remanded him in the Owerri prison,” he said.
Mr Imo said they have filed another bail application at the Federal High Court in Owerri, praying the court to order Owerri Correctional Facility to free Mr Agu.
He said the court will rule on the bail application on Thursday, 9 September.
Arraignment
The police arraigned Mr Agu before a magistrate on 25 September, charged with criminal defamation, incitement, and conduct likely to cause a breach of peace.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
PREMIUM TIMES learnt that Mr Agu was remanded in the Owerri Correctional Facility after the Chief Magistrate, Obinna Njemanze, declined jurisdiction to try the matter. He adjourned the case to 29 October.
However, while Mr Agu was being arraigned at the magistrate’s court, some lawyers, led by Mr Imo, applied for his bail at the Federal High Court.
Mr Agu was arrested and detained on 23 September, after meeting with the police for a second time in one week.
He was said to have been released on bail on the first police invitation on 17 September.
Background
The police in Imo had invited Mr Agu on Tuesday, 9 September, over the alleged defamation.
In the letter addressed to the lawyer, the office of the X-Squad Unit of the police in Imo said they were inviting him over an alleged criminal defamation of character and conduct likely to cause breach of public peace.
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However, the police invitation did not disclose who the lawyer allegedly defamed.
Reacting to the police letter, Mr Agu said the invitation stemmed from a petition allegedly lodged by the Imo State Ministry of Information against him.
He said that his consistent calls for Governor Uzodimma to appoint the most qualified person as acting chief judge of Imo State and his other criticisms of the governor were the main reasons Governor Uzodimma’s administration was after him.