Alleged Circulation Of Videos On Sokoto Governor’s Wife: Court Remands Tambuwal’s Aide

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

A Sokoto State Chief  Magistrate Court on  Friday, September 6, 2024 remanded Shafiu Umar Tureta, detained aide to Former Speaker of the House of Representatives Aminu  Tambuwal in  Correctional custody until the next adjourned date of his trial.

Tambuwal is, also, the immediate past Governor of the State.

The Source reports that Tureta,  alongside others, earlier arrested and detained by the Sokoto State Police authorities for alleged circulation of false documentary and defamatory materials on the Governor of the State and his wife.

He was alleged to have  been behind the circulation of a video clip depicting Governor Ahmed Aliyu, struggling to address his audience in English Language at a recent public function.

In another case, he  and other Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, stalwarts were accused of being the purveyors of another video clip showing guests spraying currencies of different hues on the wife of the State Governor at her  birthday party.

But in a statement issued by its  spokesperson in Sokoto ,Hassan Sahabi Sannyinawal ,the PDP told Governor Aliyu to leave the party’s followers out of his self inflicted frustrations, and rather embark on self interrogation.

“We, first of all, wish to draw the attention of the Governor to the fact that the visuals in question must have been recorded by camera men attached to his office or his family and initially leaked to the public by the same people..

“It is, therefore, the Governor’s task or that of his aides to ensure that such materials do not get to the public arena.

“Our party supporters and Media personnel are not responsible for the Governor’s personal and administrative deficits and shortcomings.

“We advise, therefore, that he should endeavour to deal with his failures in constructive and proactive ways, instead of visiting his frustrations for his shortcomings on innocent citizens” the PDP stated.

Governor Aliyu is of the All Progressive Congress APC.

Umar, has been slammed with charges bordering on the circulation of injurious falsehood and engraving matter known to be defamatory .

At the resumed hearing on Friday, His Worship, Fati Hassan, while ruling on an oral application for bail filed by the defence counsel, said the only document before  her in the matter is the First Information Report FIR

The presiding Magistrate insisted that a formal application for bail must be filed going by the nature of the case.

While adjourning the case to September 18, 2024, she ordered that the  defendant be remanded in prison custody.

The case was first mentioned on August 26, 2024, during which the prosecution Counsel, Abdulrahman Mansur, said  the defendant circulated a video of the Governor’s wife, Hajia Fatima Aliyu, spraying money during her birthday ceremony amidst the economic challenges being faced by a larger part of the citizenry.

Part of the FIR also accused Umar of circulating another video on the Governor Aliyu and his poor WAEC result and management of spoken English.