15 Officers, 82 Soldiers On Trial For Mutiny.

Fifteen army officers and 82 soldiers are facing trial for offences ranging from mutiny, assault and Absence Without Official Leave (AWOL).

Other offences preferred against the officers and men include house breaking; conduct prejudicial to good orders and service discipline; and offences relating to service propriety, among others.

The military last month sentenced 12 soldiers to death for mutiny. The sentence has continued to generate controversy across the land, with prominent individuals and rights activists calling for it to be commuted to imprisonment.

In his inaugural address at the court’s sitting in Abuja yesterday, President of the General Court Martial (GCM), Brig.-Gen. Musa Yusuf, said the trial would be guided by the principles of justice and fair hearing.

He said: “In line with the provisions of Section 35(5) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), all of you shall be presumed innocent by the court until it is proved otherwise.

“Let me further assure you that the GCM will base its decisions and findings only on the facts presented before it”, he said, adding that the court would not be influenced by extraneous forces.

“In consonance with the desire of this GCM to do justice in this case, we shall take cognisance of the postulation of Justice (Chukwudifu) Oputa that justice is a three-way traffic. . .

“That is justice for the accused persons, justice for the victim and justice for the state. We intend to patiently and painstakingly listen to all evidence that will be brought before this court to ensure that no innocent person is convicted, as it is better for nine guilty persons to go free than for one innocent person to suffer”.

Among the accused persons are four Lieutenant-Colonels: SS Tilawan, DB Danzang, IC Ogamanya and SU Abubakar.

Others are: Major II Sakaba; Captains. M Hamadikko, Z Alhaji, MB Abdullahi and SY Musa.

There are also Lieutenants T Garba, F Ogunleke, A Abdullahi, IM Okoro, D Wunuji and 2nd Lt. JM Uweh. The rest are in the rank and file.

Gen. Yusuf said the trial would be conducted and concluded without undue delay, to prevent the accused persons from suffering from the psychological trauma associated with protracted litigations.

“In line with this, I wish to appeal to both the prosecution and defence counsel to prepare their cases in earnest in order to assist the accused persons and this GCM in ensuring un-delayed justice.

“I also wish to appeal to the counsel on both sides to keep to the timing of this court and avoid asking for unnecessary adjournments so that the sincere intention of this court could be achieved.

“Finally, I wish to appeal to the members of the press that in the interest of national security, the accused persons, patriotism and justice, to be fair and objective in their reports on all issues concerning this trial,” the General stated.

The court adjourned till October 15.