Agba Jalingo: Trial judge, Simon Amobeda recused self after leaked audio

CALABAR, Cross River, Nigeria – Publisher of Crossriverwatch, Mr. Agba Jalingo who is trial in Calabar Cross River state will spend  his Christmas behind bars, following the decision of the trial judge who has severally denied him bail to recuse himself from the trial following an indicting online audio upon which the defence sought for reassignment of the case. 

Trial judge, Justice Simon Amobeda, who at the request of prosecution allowed for Government Witness to testify under mask today shocked many when he said he is withdrawing from the trial and consequently handed his file to Justice Sule Shuaibu, the administrative judge of the Calabar division. 

Before recusing himself, Justice Amobede who seemed by all intent and purpose to be under the influence of Governor Ben Ayade of Cross Rivers under whose influence Agba Jalingo was arrested and detained  granted the prayers of the defendant, for verbatim recording of the proceedings.

 He told the defense team, made up of Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and James Ibor that they never applied for court proceedings but that they resulted to  cheap media blackmail to incite the public against the court.

He said Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and James Ibor were guilty of professional misconduct. He held that the annexures to the  affidavit deposed to by Olumide-Fusika and dated November 19, 2019 were electronic generated evidence that did not meet the requirements of section 84 subsection 2 of the evidence act 2011 and were therefore expunged as prayed by the prosecution counsel, Dennis Tarhemba in his counter affidavit.

According to him,  “one cannot place something on nothing and expect it to stand,” adding that that Olumide-Fusika who does not have the record of proceedings will rely on “media catastrophes and baseless accusations.”

According to him, the court sympathises with Agba Jalingo and dismissed the prayer of the prosecution not to grant the prayer of the defense  that electronic verbatim recorder would affect the case.

Agba Jalingo  is being tried by the Ben Ayade government on charges of terrorism, conspiracy and attempts to bring down the reputation of the Cross River State Government for his critical report about government.

Meanwhile, Gani Fawehinmi Impact and Integrity Awards has made Agba Jalingo winner of the Whistle Blower Award(2019) after he was named Journalist of Conscience by the United Nations Commission for Human Rights(UNCHR).