Shiite Condemns Secret Trial of Its Members

The Islamic Movement in Nigeria popularly known as Shiite, yesterday kicked against the alleged secret trial of its members at the Kaduna Central Prison.

The group, in a statement in Kaduna, claimed that 191 of its members arrested following their clash with the Nigerian Army in Zaria in December last year were tried secretly on trumped up charges of illegal assembly, causing bodily harm, public disturbances and possession of firearms.

The group in the statement signed by the president of the its media forum, Ibrahim Musa, described the alleged secret trial as unconstitutional and illegal, saying that the charges of being in possession of firearms levelled against their members were worrisome.

Musa said the Islamic movement objected to the way and manner the court had its first sitting in prison, arguing that the its ought to have explained its unusual sitting to the public.

“The Islamic movement objects to the way and manner the court had its first sitting in prison. The court ought to have offered the general public its reason for the unusual sitting in prison, but it did not.

“For the court to hide under the guise of ‘security reasons’ for its sitting in prison is a travesty of justice, since justice as they say, should not only be done, but seen to be done.

“We object to the trial becoming a secret trial because under the law, trial of the charges against the brothers of the Islamic movement should be held in an open court where the public can witness it.

“What happened yesterday in Kaduna Prison is akin to a secret trial where the public was denied entry to the court proceedings.

“But more worrisome to us is the charge of possession of firearms labeled against the brothers. The prosecutor even said a large cache of arms was recovered from some of the brothers that had to be taken to Lagos for expert analysis. We believe this is a trumped-up charge brought up against the Islamic Movement in Nigeria,” the statement said.

The statement maintained further that “the fact that weapons are just being brought up for the first time in this matter suggests that the authorities are trying by all means to frame up charges and produce manufactured evidence against the Islamic movement.

“However, we believe the public will not be deceive with this concocted lie, because brothers and sisters of the Islamic Movement have never and will never carry or possess any weapon.”

The statement reiterate demand for the unconditional release of the Shi’ite leader, Sheikh Ibrhahim Zakzaky and other members of the group who have been in detention since their arrest following the December 12, 2015 clashes between them and the Nigerian Army in Zaria.