The State Security Service (SSS), Wednesday, threw out the Abuja Correspondent of The NEXT EDITION, Basil Abia, from covering the trial of Charles Okah, the suspected mastermind of the October 1, 2010, bombing in Abuja.
Trouble started for Mr. Abia shortly after the trial judge, Gabriel Kolawole, granted Mr. Okah leave to address the court.
Speaking, Mr. Okah not only lamented his protracted detention at the Kuje Prison but also over the delay in his trial.
He also complained bitterly that for six years, the prosecution team failed to present concrete evidence of his involvement in the Independence Day bombing.
“I prayed and fasted for years since this trial started so I could get the opportunity to say this,” Mr. Okah had begun.
“The manner in which my younger brother in South Africa and I have been treated by the state (Nigeria) has been unfortunate.
“The state has barely provided any evidence on the terrorism and treason charges levelled against me. So far, not a witness has been provided against me on this case.”
As Mr. Okah was speaking, the prosecution team interrupted and called on the judge to stop him while the defence team insisted he should be allowed to exhaust his address.
The disagreement threw the court into a row which lasted for some minutes until Mr. Kolawole intervened and assured Mr. Okah of a fair trial.
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“I will do everything to the best of my ability to ensure that this trial is fair,” Justice Kolawole had told Mr. Okah before admitting him to the witness box for cross-examination.
Just before the cross-examination started, an SSS operative who might have been monitoring the NEXT EDITION correspondent stood up and ordered Mr. Abia to leave the courtroom.
Once outside the courtroom, the operative started interrogating Mr. Abia on why he was in the court.
“He took me aside and asked what I was doing in the courtroom and I told him I was covering the case for The NEXT EDITION newspaper,” Mr. Abia recounted.
“Not satisfied, he asked me to produce my identity card and I did and he insisted that I was not authorized to cover the case. He told me that he had been monitoring me throughout the resumed trial.
“When I challenged him to tell me why I should be singled out and thrown out of the courtroom, he threatened to take me to the ‘Yellow House’ for interrogation if I don’t leave immediately.
After the interrogation, Mr. Abia was taken to the media room at the court premises apparently to be identified by some officials.
However, when the head of the unit could not be found, the reporter was not allowed to get back to the courtroom to continue covering the trial of Mr. Okah.
