Members of Urhobo Progress Union (UPU) led by its National Secretary, Albert Akpomudje, SAN, and the president of the Youth Wing, Ovie Anthony, along with the Women’s Wing, on Tuesday stormed a Federal High Court sitting in Yenagoa, Bayalse State, in solidarity with their own, Miss Ese Oruru, at the resumed trial of her alleged abductor, Dahiru Yunusa, aka Yellow.
Meanwhile, Mr Kayode Olaosebekan, counsel to Yunusa, who is standing trial on a five-count charge of abduction and sexual exploitation of a minor, Oruru said Yunusa was yet to be released because he was yet to perfect his bail conditions.
According to Olaosebekan, the public attention on the case and the bail condition which demands that the sureties must be resident in the jurisdiction of the court were scaring away individuals who would have stood as sureties, adding that they will follow the legal processes to perfect Yunusa’s bail conditions.
At the resumed hearing in the matter, Akpomudje, SAN, who announced his appearance before the trial judge, Justice H. Nganjiwa, said he was representing Urhobo interest in the matter.
After the court sitting, Akpmudje expressed satisfaction with the handling of the matter by the prosecution counsel, noting that he will write the Inspector General of Police, IG, to be part of the prosecution team.
Akpomudje said: “Our interest in this case, like I told the court, is that wherever any Urhobo prson is affected in any way, it is the responsibility of UPU to come in and protect that person. I think the prosecution did well because I felt I was going to take over but what he has done is very good.”
In his remark, the President General of UPU Youth Wing Worldwide, Anthony, said the UPU decided to wade into the case considering the sensitive nature of the matter and the way it was being handled.
According to him, “When we weigh the issue and the way the matter is being handled, the UPU as the apex body of the Urhobo people thought it wise that we should come in so that we can argue the case properly, so that another Urhobo daughter or any other person will not be a victim of what has happened to Ese Oruru.”
Meanwhile, trial judge in the matter, Justice Nganjiwa, at the resumed hearing adjourned to May 12, for the ruling on the application by the prosecution, Kenneth Dike, who is seeking the leave of the court to take the evidence of Miss Ese Oruru in secret.
Dike, in an affidavit to support his motion, citing Section 36 Sub-section 4, argued that what they were seeking for was to protect the constitutional right of the victim, Oruru, to fair trial being a minor, stressing that the victim would be shy to give her evidence in public.
Defence counsel, Kayode Olaosebekan, urged the court to dismiss the application for lack of merit, describing the application as an attempt to secure a conviction before calling on any witness, since the age of the victim was also a matter before the court.
