APGA leader, Sadiq Masalla jumps bail

The Nigerian police on Wednesday told an Abuja High Court that a suspect in a forgery case, Alhaji Sadiq Masalla, had jumped the administrative bail granted him by the IGP’s office.

Masalla, a factional leader of APGA, was to be arraigned on an 11-count charge of forging the signatures of 11 members of the National Working Committee of the party.

Masalla allegedly forged the signatures to validate a purported sacking of APGA’s National Chairman, Chief Victor Umeh, and National Secretary, Alhaji Sani Shinkafi, for allegedly spending party funds without due process.

It will be recalled that the court had on 13 November granted leave to the Inspector-General of Police to arraign Masalla on the said charges.

At the resumed hearing of the case, ASP Francis Irabor, the police prosecutor, told the court that the matter was for the arraignment of the suspect as ordered by the judge.

Irabor said that the suspect, who was to be arraigned, had `disappeared.’

“The police met a big padlock at the gate of the suspect’s home and it seems that the suspect has jumped the administrative bail that the police admitted him to. I humbly apply for the court to adjourn to a later date to enable us to produce him and grant us a bench warrant for his arrest.

“We have launched an operation to arrest him. My Lord, we are sorry to say that the suspect jumped the administrative bail temporarily given to him by the police.
We are undertaking that by the next adjourned date, we shall apprehend and arraign him before the court.

However, counsel to Masalla, Chief Tochukwu Onwubufor (SAN), in objecting to the application for a bench warrant, urged the court to discountenance the application.

He argued that it was too early for the court to issue such a warrant without first summoning the suspect.

Onwubufor said: “the Court should first summon the suspect; it is only when he fails to appear that the court can issue a warrant.’’

He argued that even if the suspect was in court today, the arraignment could not hold as he had filed a motion challenging the jurisdiction of the court to entertain the suit.

“The court ought to dispose of the motion challenging its jurisdiction before going ahead with the arraignment,’’ he said.

In his ruling, Justice Peter Kekemeke said that “the motion for objection challenging the jurisdiction of the court was not ripe for hearing.

Kekemeke held that the motion was not ripe because the suspect’s counsel served the prosecution only in court this morning.

“I have carefully looked at the arguments for and against the issuance of a bench warrant. I refuse to grant such a warrant. The police know what to do. They granted the suspect administrative bail on self recognition.

“I granted the police leave to arraign the suspect but they did not do that. You know how to get him. You do not need a court to issue a warrant to compel the suspect attend his trial,’’ he said.

In adjourning the matter to Monday, 3 December, Kekemeke directed Onwubufor (suspect’s counsel) to assist the police to produce Masalla in court on that date.

“As a minister in the temple of justice, you ought to ensure that your client is in court,’’ he said.

He fixed 3 December for hearing of the motion challenging the jurisdiction of the court to entertain the suit.