Ayodele Samuel’s wife has pleaded with Taraba State Governor Darius Ishaku to release her husband, the publisher of the Taraba Truth and Facts Newspaper, who is currently being held on remand.
Mrs Mercy Samuel broke down in tears while speaking at a press conference held by the Coalition of Journalists of Conscience (CJC) in Lagos, explaining that her children have not been attending classes due to her husband’s incarceration.
She said, “I beg the Taraba State Government to release my husband, if not for anything, for the sake of the family.”
In a press conference, CJC Secretary General Akinwale Kasali urged the Nigerian Police, the Commissioner of Police for the state of Taraba, and Governor Darius Ishaku to release Ayodele Samuel per a court order.
He explained that Samuel had been charged with two counts of defamation and injurious falsehood and had been brought before a Magistrate Court in Jalingo presided over by Justice Garba S. Garba.
The state governor formally charged him with criminal activity through the attorney general’s office.
“It comes as a reaction from nurtured grievance over a publication on page 5 of the Taraba Truth and Facts Newspaper, dated September 17, 2022, with the title ‘Taraba for Sale’.
“The publication alleges a possible sale of the Taraba State-owned Mambilla Beverages Company and state property, including the liaison office in Abuja, in which similar publications\shad appeared on other prominent Nigerian media before the publication on Taraba Truth and Facts without rebuttal.”
Akinwale has confirmed that all the bail conditions have been satisfied; however, why the publisher was remanded is only partially clear. The nefarious abuse of authority by the state government is a fact.
He explained that the move was an attempt to delay the bail process and keep the innocent media entrepreneur in the custody of the Taraba State Police Command for as long as possible to quench Governor Ishaku’s desire for oppression: “Now, the Magistrate Court Registrar is saying the case file has been transferred to the state High Court.”