Kano Protocol DG’s Petition Loses Ground as Lawyers Withdraw
Two legal practitioners, Ahmed Musa and Ridwan Yunusa, have formally distanced themselves from a petition filed to the Chief Registrar of the Kano State High Court seeking to prosecute DAILY NIGERIAN publisher, Jaafar Jaafar, and his colleague, Umar Audu, over a corruption report involving the Director General of Protocol, Kano State Government House, Abdullahi Rogo. The lawyers’ names had been listed as part of the petitioners’ counsel by Mr. Rogo’s lawyer, Hamza Nuhu Dantani of Potent Attorneys. However, both Musa and Yunusa clarified that they never gave consent for their names to be used and had no connection with the petition. DAILY NIGERIAN had earlier reported that the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) indicted Mr. Rogo for allegedly mismanaging N6.5 billion meant for contracts that were never executed. The funds were reportedly moved from the Kano State Government Federation Allocation Accounts to Bureau De Change operators in Abuja. Related: Kano Governor’s Protocol Chief Caught in N6.5bn Corruption Scandal Angered by the report, Mr. Rogo petitioned the Chief Registrar of the Kano State High Court, claiming the publication was defamatory and capable of causing public disturbance. The petition, dated August 27 and signed by Potent Attorneys, included the names of several lawyers as complainant counsel. But in separate statements, both Musa and Yunusa denied any involvement. Mr. Yunusa, in a disclaimer issued on Sunday, said: “The attention of the general public is hereby drawn to the fact that I have withdrawn my name from a case associated with the embattled Director of Protocol, Kano State, in the criminal complaint against a public interest journalist, Mr. Jaafar Jaafar. I wish to make it abundantly clear that I have not authorised the use of my name in respect of this matter ab initio. I was at no point part of the law office of Potent Attorneys and thus, my name was unauthorisedly used.” Mr. Musa also told journalists that he only became aware of the petition when Mr. Yunusa shared it with him. “Ridwan drew my attention to the petition. And I said I wasn’t aware of it. He then said he would be issuing a disclaimer and I requested him to forward the petition to me. And when he did, I saw my name as one of those who signed it. Although I knew those who signed it, my name was included without my consent,” he said. The development raises further questions about the credibility of the petition and its prospects in court. (Daily Nigerian)
