KADUNA CLERIC ADMITS RECEIVING MONEY TO PRAY OVER ALLEGED COUP PLOT
Read Time:2 Minute, 53 Second
BY JENN NOMAMIUKOR
Sani Abdulkadir, who is the sixth person being tried in the case against people accused of plotting to overthrow President Bola Tinubu’s government, said he told the others that their plan would not work.
Zagazola Makama, a publication that covers counter–insurgency efforts in the Lake Chad area, reported that Abdulkadir made this statement on Monday during the resumption of the trial at the federal high court in Abuja.
Abdulkadir, who spoke in a video recording played in court, admitted receiving money to pray for the success of the operation but added that he warned the alleged coup plotters that they would be sabotaged from within.
In the recording, Abdulkadir, who is an Islamic cleric, said he had known Maaji, the person believed to be leading the group, for under a year. He was contacted through an intermediary named Sanda, who asked him to provide spiritual support for the plan.
Sanda told him that his “Oga” wanted to carry out a coup and needed prayers to determine if it would succeed.
After doing the prayers, Abdulkadir told them the operation would not work because two people would eventually reveal the people involved.
He said the suspects, however, sent him another request asking for further prayers to prevent the two individuals from speaking out.
Zagazola reported that money was later transferred to the cleric for prayers and charity, while names of alleged participants were forwarded for inclusion.
Abdulkadir said he first learnt of the arrests through media reports after Sanda informed him that Maaji had been unreachable for four days.
He said the funds received were strictly for prayers and not in support of any coup attempt.
The cleric also acknowledged that he understood a coup meant a military overthrow of government but said he did not report the plot because he did not know whom to report to.
According to him, he was arrested after visiting the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to resolve restrictions placed on his bank account.
He was invited to the commission’s office to explain the source of the funds.
Abdulkadir denied making any coup-related statement while in EFCC custody, adding that he was neither assaulted nor tortured, adding that all his statements were made voluntarily.
Following the playback, the prosecution sought to tender extrajudicial statements made by all six defendants before a special investigation panel and military police authorities.
However, defence lawyers for the six defendants objected, arguing that the statements were either obtained involuntarily or made in violation of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA).
Their objections included failure to inform the defendants of their right to legal representation; alleged discrepancies between video recordings and corresponding written statements; allegations of coercion, inducement and torture; and claims that the footage did not adequately establish the physical condition of the defendants during recording.
Counsel to the fifth defendant further argued that, given the number of accused persons, the court should conduct separate trial-within-trial proceedings for each disputed statement rather than a combined exercise.
Responding, the prosecution urged the court to dismiss the objections, maintaining that the law does not mandate separate proceedings for each defendant and that the trial judge has the discretion to determine how evidence is received.
Joyce Abdulmalik, the presiding judge, ruled in favour of a single joint trial-within-trial to determine the voluntariness and admissibility of all the disputed statements.
The case was adjourned to May 12.
Happy
0 %
Sad
0 %
Excited
0 %
Sleepy
0 %
Angry
0 %
Surprise
0 %
0
0