Kano, Sokoto, Borno, Katsina, and Plateau top the list, with Russia flag protestors flown to Abuja. •According to the NBA, data has not yet been gathered. •The Association goes to court on behalf of victims brutalised in Abuja. By Henry Ojelu, Wole Mosadomi, Marie-Therese Nanlong, Ndahi Marama, Bashir Bello, Ibrahim Hassan-Wuyo, Demola Akinyemi, Charly Agwam, Femi Bolaji, Idris Salisu, Ogalah Ibrahim, Musa Ubandawaki, Abel Daniel The 10-day #EndBadGovernance protests may be gone, but the consequences may linger for some time. For example, numerous demonstrators arrested in several states, primarily in the North, have been charged and put in prison until their trial, which may not begin anytime soon given the trial delays that have characterised our courts.
Consequently, they are now ‘prisoners-awaiting-trial’.
The arraignment is in accordance with the law, which requires a defendant to be arraigned in court within 48 hours of arrest, but there is no proof that the #EndBadGovernance protesters received legal representation during the arraignment, as is customary. It was also unclear whether their pleas were heard, and worse, there was no bail for them. For example, the police stated that none of the 600 of the 832 protestors arrested in Kano State and accused in court were eligible for bail because they were all sent to prison pending the next hearing in their case.The scenario is essentially identical in Plateau State, where 51 people were arrested and charged in court without legal representation or bail. However, the police confirmed that a lawyer had phoned for one of the accused but did not clarify.
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