Cross River: SAN Accuses Otu's Gov't As Responsible For Former Governor Ayade Aide's Ordeal
By Ndifereke BASSEY
A Calabar-based human rights lawyer, and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, (SAN) Mba Ukweni has accused governor Bassey Otu 's officials of being behind the ordeals of former Special Adviser (SA) to former governor Ben Ayade on Cocoa Development and Control, Dr. Oscar Ofuka.
Ukweni said these officials are doing everything humanly possible to use their political influence to jail Ofuka, charging him with murder.
The legal practitioner made the allegations Sunday while reacting to the circumstances that led to Ayade's ex-aide, Oscar Ofuka, who is now in coma in one of the hospitals in Calabar.
Ukweni said as a lawyer, he would never obstruct justice or prosecution of any individual who had been found wanting stressing that what he is against is when those in charge failed to follow due process.
He said: "They should just pray that nothing happens to Ofuka. Being in government does not make anyone above the law.
"All I expected them to have done is to set up a commission of enquiry to investigate what happened during Ayade's regime rather than torment the young man the way they are doing to the extent that he slide in coma. What they are doing is totally unacceptable.
"That is not what the law said. In all circumstance, we must always act in accordance with what the law said it should be done.
"Our law presumes any suspect to be innocent until the court makes pronouncement of his guilt.
"It pre-supposes that a suspect should be treated with highest level of decency, and respect because sometimes you may eventually find out that, the suspect is innocent."
"While not wanting to comment on what is before the court, on the basis of sub-judies.
"This in particular, is when I got to find out that he was arrested in his home town that he brought army people to intimidate people in the farm, and I went to find out.
"I found that was wrong, he was taken to the army station at Edor Barracks at Ikom local government of Cross River state," Ukweni stated.
The legal practitioner attributed the torment faced by Ayade's former aide to allocation of cocoa plots made by the past administration at the government Cocoa estate where some officials of the Otu's administration are refusing to honour agreement Ayade government entered into with Cocoa allottees.
"The present administration can not say whatever agreement the previous administration entered into can not work because overnment is continuum.
"Those agreements were done before the attorney general of the state, with receipts from government, paid into government revenue internal revenue accounts and the present administration is saying it won't honour the agreement? Ukweni questioned.
In reaction to the allegation, Gov. Otu special Adviser on Security Matters, Maj. Gen. Okoi Obono (Rtd.), and Secretary to State Government SSG Prof Anthony Owan have since denied their involvement in Ofuka's travails.
