By Ken Afor
Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State has been fined N500 million by the Federal High Court in Abuja for violating the fundamental rights of Murtala Ajaka, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate in the 11th November gubernatorial election.
The verdict was given by Justice Inyang Ekwo who ordered Governor Bello to apologize to Ajaka for the unlawful transgression of his rights, according to Politics Nigeria.
The court ruled that security agencies should guarantee protection for Ajaka before, during, and after the November 11 gubernatorial election in Abuja, Kogi, and the entirety of Nigeria.
The judge imposed an injunction prohibiting security agencies from taking any action of arresting, detaining, harassing, or threatening Ajaka’s life and properties.
Ajaka had earlier filed a motion to the court for protection, accusing Governor Bello and a few security departments of intending to kidnap him to Kogi State, which he deemed risky for his own wellbeing.
Ajaka alleged that Governor Bello of the All Progressives Congress (APC) had threatened and intimidated him, demanding he resign from the gubernatorial primary race with chilling ultimatums.
Following his move to the SDP and securing its gubernatorial candidacy, Ajaka alleged that threats against his life persisted, culminating in a violent attack on his convoy during a courtesy visit.
Accusing Governor Bello of engineering the attack, he claimed that the security forces, acting under the governor’s orders, shot at his convoy, damaging vehicles and creating pandemonium.
Justice Ekwo found that none of the governor’s averments in the affidavit were specific when delivering the judgment.
“In other words, they are merely general averments. Furthermore, none of the averments specifically mentions the incident of 3rd June, 2023 and proffer a defence thereto,” he said.
He held that Bello’s counter affidavit was feeble and failed to effectively challenge Ajaka’s case.
His words: “It is my finding that the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th respondents violated the rights of the applicant as enshrined in Chapter IV of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
“The case of the applicant succeeds on the merit against the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th respondents in this case and I so hold.
“In awarding damages in this case, I will take into account the trauma of the applicant of being shot at by those whose statutory duty is to protect the citizens, acting under the command of the 1st respondent (Bello) who is statutorily the chief security officer of a state for a cause that is manifestly unlawful but inhuman.
“I will also take into consideration the physical and mental anguish of the applicant when he stood in utter helplessness and watched the 1st respondent using his political might through the apparatus of the state for security and law enforcement to shoot and burn down the campaign vehicles of the applicant’s political party.
“I will further take into account the near-death experience of the applicant and the mental torture that comes with it, when the vehicle in which he was, was riddled with bullets from the guns that ought to have been used to protect him and other citizens.
“It must be understood that fundamental rights of all citizens are sacrosanct and unless as authorised by law, any action by which an unlawful breach thereof is successfully proved, will be determined to reflect the depth of condemnation by the court.”
It would be recalled that Ajaka a candidate of the SDP came second in the November 11 governorship election in Kogi State with 259,052 votes, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Ahmed Usman-Ododo who was declared winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) polled 446,237 votes.
