Gen Udom’s detention of 21-year-old over alleged injurious Facebook posts, an overkill – Akpan
A lawyer, Imo Akpan Esq, gives an insight into the arrest and detention of 21-year-old Michael Itok for over 60 days over alleged injurious Facebook posts against Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State in this interview with – PATRICK ODEY
WHAT ARE THE CHARGES AGAINST MICHAEL ITOK, THE MARKETING OFFICER OF THE PRUDENTIAL MICRO FINANCE BANK?
Well, there is just one charge against him, which is based on internal security and enforcement of the law of Akwa Ibom State. He was charged under Section 6 with activities that constitute a nuisance because of some Facebook posts, which the governor considers as a nuisance. In that case, Governor Udom Emmanuel is the complainant in respect of the charge.
WHAT WERE THE CONTENTS OF THE FACEBOOK POSTS?
Well, I may not remember all of them, but some of the allegations against the governor are quite unprintable. Michael Itok claimed that he was not the author of those posts, but he only shared them.
He was picked up by operatives of the Department of State Services. The DSS had invited him on the day before he was arrested. He was at the Prudential Micro Finance Bank when they swooped on him in his office on October 8,2019. He has been in the custody of the DSS since then.
He was arraigned on November 26 at a Magistrate’s Court in Fulga, Uyo. That was the beginning of his journey to prison.
AS ONE COMMITTED TO THIS CASE, WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO DO ABOUT IT?
We have applied under the law to have him regain his freedom. He is presumed innocent until the contrary is proven. More so, he was not even arraigned before a court that has the competent jurisdiction to hear the charge. If a court does not have the jurisdiction and the powers, by virtue of its composition to and creation by law, to handle certain categories of offences, it should also not have powers to make consequential orders.
So, if he is brought before the Magistrate’s Court, grade 2, which does not have the jurisdiction to hear criminal offences in a charge that attracts 14 years prison terms. Our plea before the court is that it ought not to make any consequential order. The right thing to do for any suspect charged to a court by security agents of government is to arraign him before the appropriate court.
You can’t keep somebody away for almost 48 days and then, all of a sudden, you take him to a court that lacks jurisdiction, knowing that the judge or magistrate will say, ‘I don’t have the jurisdiction go and wait in custody, pending the advice of the Director of Public Prosecution in the Ministry of Justice’.
So, that is why he has been in custody till date. We have filed an application for his release him on bail on the ground that he is entitled to bail pending his actual arraignment in the appropriate court. We are awaiting hearing in that application.
IS IT TRUE THAT HE WAS A STEWARD TO GOVERNOR UDOM EMMANUEL?
Yes, it is factual that he was a steward to Governor Emmanuel. In fact, the background of it is that his own father worked with the governor in the past. That was when he served in some capacities at Zenith Bank PLC. I am not certain now under what circumstances that his father disengaged from the services of the governor. He might have had an accident or become indisposed and then the governor decided that having lost a faithful servant, he needed to pick somebody from the family to be closed to him. That was why he was employed as a steward in government house which also placed him in some privileged positions to have a lot more information at his disposal than the average Akwa Ibom indigene in the street.
DURING THE PERIOD HE SERVED AS THE GOVERNOR’S STEWARD WAS THERE ANY PERSONAL ISSUE BETWEEN HIM AND THE GOVERNOR THAT WARRANTED SUCH FACEBOOK POSTS AGAINST THE GOVERNOR?
Well, like I said before, he is not the author of the posts. He has made it very clear that he is not the author of the posts. Since, it is a matter that has to be proved in one way or the other, there are questions to be asked: ‘Were you the originator of the posts? Were you the one who came up with the information? Is the information true? And if it is true, what was the source?’ These are the things we cannot determine for now.
What is interesting is that after he left the Government House, he joined the All Progressives Congress. Also, in a very open manner, he made his position known that the APC-dominated Federal Government that was expected to take over in May 29,2019 would be better than the one in the state.
He is entitled to the right of association, whether political or religious or otherwise. Again, we cannot begin to draw a conclusion and speculate that his arrest and prolonged incarceration is on the account of his political leaning. We can’t speculate over that, but what we are restricting ourselves to is the fact that the charges were injurious and amounted to a nuisance on a governor of a state and for that reason the security agents had to wade in.
We also think differently on the approach of the governor to such issues. Our view is that if there are publications, which we are familiar with that are injurious, we have ample laws in our civil jurisprudence, either for defamation, libel or slander and you have the right to sue for damages.
You also have the right to go and prove because there are stipulations within the law. The law does not envisage that the institutions of state, men and women, who hold political offices at the state or federal levels, should invoke the power and authority in their offices on any citizen. That will be overkill.
You can’t deploy the institution of state on any individual. The best thing is if you think such a publication is injurious to you, obtain a civil suit and don’t forget that there has to be a balance. You must also know that those who hold public offices are holding themselves out to be accountable to the people. They govern.
Like the Americans say, if you can’t stand the heat in the kitchen, you can leave. It is expected that you cannot coordinate and control what people say about you or against you, because they are all entitled to their opinions. We are entitled to different level of emotional expressions. Those are the things that the law regulates. In fact, we are praying that the Governor of Akwa Ibom State will push himself out as a complainant in a matter against a 21-year-old boy. I have difficulties in finding wisdom in that kind of action. I think it is an exaggerated display of political power.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE WAY ITOK WAS ARRESTED?
Well, I was not there. Again you are dealing with the DSS, the secret police. That is the institution of state we are talking about. Unless the DSS have no reason to require your attention, they will pick you up wherever you think you are, except you want to become a fugitive. They swooped on him in his office in the early hours of the morning when he was on duty and took him into their custody.
WHAT ABOUT HIS HUMILIATION AND INCARCERATION?
It is a natural consequence. The greatest freedom that is protected by the law is the right to live. The next one is freedom of movement. Nobody should be restrained from moving freely, no matter how cozy the detention facilities may be. He is not feeling too good, he is a young man and has never been exposed to that kind of situation.
ARE YOU SURE THAT THE GOVERNOR IS AWARE OF WHAT IS GOING ON?
A charge is a public document. So when you have a complaint filed by the Ministry of Justice, based on the investigation by the DSS, there is no way we can say the governor is not aware. You have the name of the governor there in black and white. These are not the kind of things you do behind the governor’s back. So, I am pretty certain that he is aware of the matter. Itok has also told me that after his arrest he had an interaction with the governor.
HOW LONG HAS ITOK BEEN IN DETENTION?
He has been there for about 60 days.
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