Northern Youths Hail FHC over bail for Ex-Gov Bello, says judiciary is indeed last hope of common man
Youths in North Central Nigeria have reacted to the bail granted to the immediate past governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello by the Federal High Court Abuja, saying it is a good omen on the pathway of the former Chief Executive of Kogi towards getting justice and a demonstration of the court’s commitment to diligent prosecution and not persecution.
The Abuja Federal High Court had on Friday granted Yahaya Bello bail in the sum of N500 million with two sureties in like sum after he pleaded not guilty to the 19-count charges brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
He is facing an alleged money laundering trial to the tune of N80bn but pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
Reacting to the bail, North Central Youths under the aegis of North Central Youth Leader Forum (NCYLF) applauded the judiciary for demonstrating that it is indeed the last hope of the common man and that the court recognizes the need for upholding fundamental human rights of an accused.
In a statement on Friday signed by the National Coordinator of NCYLF, Dr. Aondohemba Uji, it thanked the court for not allowing itself to be stampeded by anti-human right forces who at all cost want Yahaya Bello to be “nailed” in a manner that undermines judicial process.
Dr. Uji said Nigeria’s constitutional democrac assumes an accused person to be innocent until proven guilty, saying the court has done what every lover of human right had expected.
He said, “I want to commend the Federal High Court Abuja for exercising its discretion to grant an accused person bail judiciously in the case of His Excellency, Alhaji Yahaya Bello despite the cacophony of voices that had in the court of public opinion found him guilty.
“The court has not only reinforced the popular saying that an accused is innocent until proven guilty, it has shown that even in the the midst of barrage of charges against the former governor, he is still entitled to freedom like every other citizen of this country.
“We are optimistic that the wheel of justice will at the end grind to its logical conclusion irrespective of how slow, stating that the man in question is not only a man of unscathed integrity whose track record throughout his career in public service speaks to honour, he is a man popular among young people, being the Chief Executive of a state like Kogi for eight years.
The youth group also congratulated the former governor for his high spirit at these difficult times, expressing hope that the just shall be vindicated.
