Nigerian Journalists Granted bail by Chief Magistrate Court

Two journalists and a former Director-General of the Kano state Censorship Board, who were arrested by Kano state police command for allegedly inciting the killing of nine health workers in the state have been granted bail by Chief Magistrate Court 17.

The presiding Judge, Justice Ibrahim Bello in his ruling stated that having observed several provision of the constitution which give automatic bail to an offence that does not exceed three year jail term he granted the defendants a bail with payment of N100, 000 each and two sureties.

The sureties are to include a community leader and a head of department with the organisation where they work.

Yakubu Musa Fage, Mubarak Muhammed of Wazobia FM in Kano and Abubakar Rabo appeared at the Magistrate court in Kano on a seven-count charge, which includes criminal conspiracy, inciting disturbances, intentional insult among others.

The defendant expressed no regret over the incident.

Meanwhile counsel to the defendants, Barrister Musa Adamu said the judgement was well delivered considering the gravity of the offence they are being charge with.

At the instances of both parties, the judge adjourned the case till the 13th of March 2013.

According to the prosecutor, the journalists allegedly made comments on radio, which “show that polio immunisations were an anti-Islam western conspiracy to cause infertility in women.”

The statement was allegedly made on Hausa Programme Sandar Girma two days before the nine female workers administering the polio immunization vaccines were killed.

The vaccinators were shot dead in two separate attacks