By Ikechukwu Nnochiri
ABUJA — Charles Okah, Obi Nwabueze, Edmund Ebiware, and Tiemkemfa Francis Osvwo, a.k.a General Gbokos, were yesterday, re-arraigned before a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja in two separate amended charges over acts of terrorism and other treasonable offences they allegedly committed against the Federal Republic of Nigeria at different times.

The accused persons who took turns, yesterday, to enter plea of “not guilty” to an amended one-count charge with 22-particulars of overt acts of treason, also pleaded innocence to another eight-count criminal charge relating to the October 1 twin bomb blasts that killed about 12 persons in Abuja whilst Nigeria celebrated its Independence Day.

Their arraignment followed an observation by government’s lawyer, Mr Alex Izinyon, SAN, that the prosecution hitherto relied on a wrong statutory provision to commence the trial of all the accused persons.

Despite vehement objections from the defence counsel led by Mr Oghenovo Otemu, Mr Ugochukwu Ezekiel and Mr Ibrahim Idris, who  sought a short adjournment to enable them  produce some documents they insisted would go a long way towards puncturing the case against their clients, presiding Justice Gabriel Kolawole over-ruled them and ordered the court clerk to read the amended charges to the accused persons.

The defence counsel had, in their oral objections, asked for time to certify the documents which they said would prove that their clients were being victimized unnecessarily.

Their application was turned down, just as the trial Judge gave the Federal Government the nod to produce its witnesses in court on January 27 and February 1, when the case was adjourned to.

Meanwhile, Justice Kolawole yesterday ordered that Charles Okah, the younger brother to the embattled ex-leader of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, Henry Okah, be given an immediate medical attention following an obvious deterioration in his health standard.

Charles, who was clad in a dirty white polo and jeans, shook and coughed uncontrollably throughout the entire proceeding which lasted for over four hours yesterday.

His lawyer, Otemu,  lamented that the officers of the Nigerian prison in Kuje, not only lock the accused persons in a solitary confinement void of any form of light or space, and also decried that the 1st accused who he said has only one kidney, may die in the absence of an urgent medical attention.

Consequently, Justice Kolawola in his ruling, held that “the Prisons should ensure that the 1st accused person who have been coughing persistently is given adequate medical attention before the next adjourned date. If the prison lacks adequate medical facilities, it should let the court know forthwith.”