By Mohammed Bello Doka
In a recent development, Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja, has once again ordered the remand of Professor Cyril Ndifon, the suspended Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Calabar (UNICAL), at the Kuje Centre of the Nigerian Correctional Service. This remand follows the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) filing a substituted charge.
The ICPC's application to substitute the earlier charge was granted, adding Barrister Sunny Anyanwu as the 2nd Defendant. Anyanwu, initially one of Ndifon's defense lawyers, was later joined in the suit due to allegations of threatening a star witness.
Professor Ndifon, initially remanded on January 8, 2024, was granted temporary bail on January 10, 2024, for a scheduled glaucoma surgery. However, at the commencement of the main trial, the ICPC sought to substitute the charge with an amended version.
Dr. Osuobeni Ekoi Akponimisingha, Counsel to the ICPC, stated, "That you Professor Cyril Osim Ndifon and Barrister Sunny Anyanwu sometime in the month of November, 2023, conspired...to threaten a prosecution witness...intended to pervert the cause of justice."
Both defendants pleaded not guilty to the amended charges, setting the stage for the trial. Despite the defense's plea for a bail application hearing extension, the presiding judge ruled in favor of continuing the main trial due to the absence of a formally filed medical report.
Before the first prosecution witness testified, Justice Omotosho instructed the press not to publish pictures or real names of witnesses to protect them. The witness detailed Ndifon's arrest following a petition on sexual harassment, official corruption, and abuse of office, revealing the discovery of explicit content in his phone.
The judge adjourned the trial and ruling on the bail application to Friday, January 26, 2024, while ordering the remand of the defendants at the Kuje Centre of the Nigerian Correctional Service.
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