Fresh facts have emerged as to the reason why a former commissioner of works in Kano state, Mu’azu Magaji, is still in prison custody six days after being granted bail by a magistrate court.
Recall that Magaji, a staunch critic of the Kano state governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, was docked before the court for allegedly posting a picture on Facebook depicting the governor as an immoral person.
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The court had, however, granted him bail at the sum of N1million and two sureties in like sum who must either be a village head of Dan Sarauniya, a Hisbah Commander from Dawakin Tofa, or a Chief Imam.
However, court papers filed by Magaji’s lawyer for bail variation obtained by Daily Trust on Thursday indicated that the Magistrate told the lawyers afterwards that he meant the Chief Imam of Dawakin Tofa LGA not that of Dan Sarauniya village.
In an affidavit in support of the motion deposed to by Hamza Abdullahi Shariff, a litigation secretary in the firm of Magaji’s lawyer, the court was told that “the conditions stipulated are onerous and excessive to the defendant/applicant especially the issue of Chief Imam of Dawakin Tofa.”
It said, “That the Chief Imam of Dawakin Tofa is answerable to the District Head of Dawakin Tofa (Isma’ila Umar Ganduje) the biological elder brother to the complainant, same father, same mother.”
The court papers further revealed that when the said Chief Imam of Dawakin Tofa was contacted to stand as surety for Magaji, he declined and said he only receives instructions from the District Head.
The court was further told that all other Chief Imams in the local government declined to stand as surety except the Chief Imam of Dan Sarauniya village, where the defendant comes from.
The defendant thereafter appealed to the court to review the terms of the bail condition, saying as a family man with responsible grown-up children, his offspring could also stand as surety for him.
Meanwhile, the court is expected to hear the motion for the review of the terms of this bail condition on Friday.
