Home FEATURES Senator Misau Escapes Detention With N5 Million Bail

Senator Misau Escapes Detention With N5 Million Bail

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Senator Isah Hamman Misau

The Senator, representing Bauchi Central currently serving in the Senate, Senator Isah Hamman Misau, narrowly escaped being detained today, Thursday for allegedly disseminating injurious falsehood against the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Kpotum Idris.
Justice Bello in whose court in Abuja, the nation’s Federal Capital, was charged with such offense, granted Senator Misau bail in the sum of N5 million and two reliable sureties in the same amount.
The Judge said that he granted the bail, following plea by the Counsel to Misau, in self-recognizance for the defendant who is a serving senator representing Bauchi Central in the Senate.
Senator Misau was arraigned before the High Court of the FCT in Maitama, Abuja, on charges of disseminating injurious falsehood against IGP and former Inspector General of Police who doubles as Chairman of the Police Service Commission, Chief Mike Okiro as well as the Nigeria Police. Misau was arraigned by the Federal government on a five-count charge bordering on spreading of falsehood against the three officers person between August and October this year.
Senator Misau pleaded not guilty to all the charges even as his counsel, Chief Godwin Obla (SAN) moved an oral application for his bail on the grounds that section 393 (1) of the Penal Code under which the serving senator was charged carried maximum of two years punishment upon conviction.
The Counsel said that section 163 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015, expressly makes provision for bail of the defendant.
Obla also argued that section 36 of the 1999 constitution presumed the defendant innocent and that been a serving senator, he cannot run away. He also said that the defendant cannot tamper with police investigation having been completed and that he cannot also influence the prosecution witnesses who are said to be serving police officers.
Meanwhile, the trial has been fixed for November 28 and 29, 2017.
Part of the charges against the defendant were that on August 10, this year in Abuja, he made false statement of fact that Police Officers were paying as much as N2.5m each to get special promotion and juicy postings and that the allegation was capable of harming the reputation of the IGP Idris, Police Force and Police Service Commission.
The defendant was also alleged to have on October 5, 2017, in Abuja, made false statement of fact to the effect that N10b was been received monthly by the Inspector General of Police from Oil companies, Banks and Hotels for deployment of police for protection among others and that the allegation was capable of harming the reputation of the IG, Okiro and the Police.

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Part of the charges filed before the FCT High Court are, “That you, lsah Hamman Misau of Hamman Misau Residence, Turaki Street, Misau, Bauchi State, on or about  August 10, 2017, at Abuja and other part of Nigeria within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did make a false statement of fact to wit: that police officers pay as much as two million, five hundred thousand naira (N2.5m) to get special promotion and posting through the Police Service Commission as published in the Daily Trust Newspaper dated August 10, 2017, knowing that such false statement of fact would harm the reputation of Mr. Ibrahim Kpotun ldris (the serving Inspector-General of Police), the Nigeria Police Force and the Police Service Commission and you thereby committed an offence.
Meanwhile, the trial has been fixed for November 28 and 29, 2017. [myad]