The report of a purported appeal by the federal government against the judgement of a High Court of Justice of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) sitting in Maitama District of Abuja, which discharged and acquitted the President of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN), Innocent Bola-Audu, has been described as false and misleading.

Babatunde Adewusi, counsel to Bola-Audu, at a media briefing in Abuja on Thursday, called on the general public to ignore and discountenance what he called sinister plots by some individuals, seeking to mislead them in order to deny his client his rightful office and leadership of ASCSN.

Recall that a few months ago, the Court had cleared Bola-Audu of the charges of human trafficking brought against him by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).

Adewusi described the latest report of a purported appeal being considered by the Federal Government as Bola-Audu as mischievous and an attempt to discredit his client’s rightful claim to the leadership of the ASCSN and stop him from assuming office on the strength of the judgement of the FCT High Court, which exonerated him of all allegations.

In the judgment, Justice Charles Agbaza held that the prosecutor failed to link the Bola-Audu and three other defendants with the human trafficking offence. Hence, they were all discharged and acquitted.

Speaking with journalists, Adewusi appealed to the media to exercise due diligence in verifying news before reporting, as this holds the potential to heat up the polity unnecessarily and expose them to both to criminal and civil liabilities.

“We urge the public to ignore and discountenance the sinister plots of these individuals seeking to mislead the public.

“First and foremost, we categorically state that the Federal Government is currently focused on addressing more pressing issues of national importance. It is far-fetched and baseless to suggest that limited resources would be expended on the inordinate persecution of its citizens without valid cause.

“It is important to note that the report circulating in the news media stating that our client is still answerable to criminal charges is unequivocally fake news.

“The Federal Government will never engage the services of fraudulent and unregistered entities such as the so-called Anti-Corruption Outreach for MASS mobilization and Action Against Corruption. The said entity is faceless and unregistered at the Corporate Affairs Commission. We have however reported this matter to the appropriate security agencies to thoroughly investigate the individuals behind this despicable scheme and bring them to justice.

“Furthermore, we want to emphasize that Comrade Innocent Bola Audu has been duly discharged and acquitted of all charges previously made against him. It is believed that these charges were maliciously sponsored by individuals who unlawfully interfered with his tenure as the National President of ASCSN. He believes that these individuals are the ones sponsoring Appeals (if any) against the judgment of the FCT High Court , which clearly declared there was no offense initially.

“These individuals, who are not members of the Association of Senior Civil Servant of Nigeria, continue their desperate attempts to gain unlawful control over the Association. In disobedience of various Court orders, they have persistently engage in forum shopping, seeking to instigate criminal charges and disqualify our client from his responsibilities as a Federal Civil servant and as the duly elected National President of ASCSN.

“As the legal representatives of Comrade Innocent Bola Audu, we will continue to provide him with our unwavering support and encourage him to remain strong and steadfast. He shall continue to conduct himself as a law-abiding citizen, fulfilling his duties responsibly.

“We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission, the Head of Service of the Federation, the Accountant General of the Federation, the Inspector-General of Police and the Director- General of DSS for their wisdom , courage, and firm resolve to do what is right in the face of such blackmail tactics.

“We, the legal representatives of Comrade Innocent Bola Audu, wish to address the recent reports circulating in the news media regarding the alleged interest of the Federal Government in Appealing the decision of the FCT High Court which cleared Comrade Innocent Bola-Audu of the Charges of Human Trafficking brought against him by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).

“We would like to clarify that these latest reports are a result of a mischievous scheme designed to discredit our client’s rightful claim as the President of the Association of Senior Civil Servant of Nigeria (ASCSN) and impede him from assuming office on the strength of the judgement of the FCT High Court which exonerated him of all allegation.

“First and foremost, we categorically state that the federal government is currently focused on addressing more pressing issues of national importance.

“It is far-fetched and baseless to suggest that limited resources would be expended on the inordinate persecution of its citizens without valid cause.

“It is important to note that the report circulating in the news media stating that our client is still answerable to criminal charges is unequivocally fake news.

“The federal government will never engage the services of fraudulent and unregistered entities such as the so-called Anti-Corruption Outreach for MASS mobilization and Action Against Corruption.”

He described those behind the report as faceless and unregistered at the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).

He said a report has been made to the appropriate security agencies to thoroughly investigate the individuals behind the despicable scheme and bring them to justice.

“Furthermore, we want to emphasize that Comrade Innocent Bola Audu has been duly discharged and acquitted of all charges previously made against him.

“It is believed that these charges were maliciously sponsored by individuals who unlawfully interfered with his tenure as the National President of ASCSN,” he added.