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BIAFRA: 45 arraigned, remanded in prison on treason charges over Trump rally

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45 pro-Biafra agitators, arrested on Friday during a rally in support of the new United States (US) President, Donald Trump, have been arraigned and ordered to be remanded in prison custody.

They were arraigned before two Magistrate Courts in Port Harcourt on Monday on treason charges leveled against them by the Rivers State Police Command.

The accused who are members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the Movement for the Actualisation of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) had organised a solidarity rally to commemorate the swearing in of Mr Trump when they were arrested by security operatives who claimed they did not obtain permit before commencing the peaceful protest.

Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Francis Odesanya charged the arrested persons to court on two counts of conspiracy to felony and treasonable felony.

While the police arraigned seven of them before Chief Magistrate Obi Amadi-Nna, the remaining 38 were charged before Chief Magistrate, Sokari Andrew-Jaja.

The charges read, “That you Baco Johnson, Cosmos Monday, Chinonso Kalu and 42 others on January 20, 2017 at Garrison Bus stop, Port Harcourt in the Port Harcourt Magisterial District did conspire amongst yourselves to commit felony to wit: treasonable felony and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 516A (1) of the Criminal Code Cap 37 Vol II Laws of Rivers State of Nigeria, 1999.

“That you, Baco Johnson, Cosmos Monday, Chinonso Kalu and 42 others on the same date and time and place in the aforesaid Magisterial District did conduct yourselves in a manner likely to force or compel the president to change his measures, by displaying flags and other items of the Biafran Republic with such intention by an act to take over the government of Nigeria by force and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 41(C) of the Criminal Code Cap 37 Vol II Laws of Rivers State of Nigeria, 1999,” the charge sheet marked, PMC/112C/2017 read.

The Chief Magistrate, Mr. Sokari Andrew-Jaja, when the court sat around 6:30pm on Monday, adjourned the matter till January 30, instructing all involved in the matter to appear on the adjourned date with their written addresses.

Read also: I shall never desert IPOB, MASSOB, their struggle is mine too –Ohanaeze President

In the same manner, the Chief Magistrate, Mr. Obi Amadi-Nna, also remanded the seven charged before him in prison and adjourned till January 30 for adoption of written addresses on the same offences.

Meanwhile, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Chief Femi Falana has faulted the claim of not obtaining a permit for the rally, on which basis the agitators were arrested and more than 11 of them allegedly killed and several others wounded.

According to Falana, “Police permit which is a relic of colonialism has been annulled on the ground of its inconsistency with the provisions of the Constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on freedom of assembly, association and expression.

“To that extent, the disruption of public meetings and rallies by the police and other security agencies ought to be resisted by Nigerians as it is illegal and contemptuous”, he stated.

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