For the 5th time, court orders FG to release Dasuki

For the fifth time, a Federal High Court in Abuja has granted bail to a former National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd), in the sum of N200million and two sureties in like sum.

Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu granted Dasuki bail on Monday while delivering judgment on a fresh fundamental human rights suit by Dasuki after the Federal Government refused to release him based on four previous bail granted to him by Justice Ademola Adeniyi (rtd.), Justice Ahmed Mohammed, Justice Hussein Baba-Yusuf and Justice Peter Affen at various times in the Federal High Court and the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja.

Justice Ojukwu further held that Dasuki’s application is not connected to the earlier matters in which he had been granted bail. She held that Dasuki’s continued detention since 2015 by agents of the Federal Government is a gross violation of his fundamental rights and consequently ordered for his release on bail.

But the judge said the two sureties must be, either civil servants not below grade level 16 or private citizens who will deposit N100m with the registrar of the court to be returned to the sureties at the end of the trial.

For the civil servant, the court ordered that a letter of appointment and letter of last promotion be submitted to the court for verification.

In the event that the surety is a private citizen, he must own landed property in Abuja metropolis and produce the original copies of the property.

In addition the surety must produce evidence of tax payment from 2015, 2016 and 2017.

The conditions also included submission of copies of sureties passport photographs to the court as well as addresses of residency.

Though, the judge frowned at the continued detention of the former NSA by the Federal Government, as “an aberration of the rule of law and the constitution” she refused to award N5billion damages asked by Dasuki for the breach of his rights.

The judge however, dismissed federal government’s claim that Dasuki constituted security risk to the nation.