By Emmanuel Nduka
Aminu Adamu, an undergraduate who was arrested for criticising Nigeria’s First Lady, Aisha Buhari on Twitter, has been remanded at the Suleja Prison in Niger State.
The student of the Federal University, Dutse, Jigawa State, had earlier in June this year tweeted, “Su mama Anchi Kudin Talakawa an koshi”, meaning “Mama has fed fat on poor people’s money”.
Months later, security operatives arrested and whisked him to the Presidential Villa in Abuja, where he was beaten and tortured, according to his uncle.
Aminu was subsequently arraigned at a court in Abuja, where he was denied bail despite pleading not guilty to the charges filed against him.
Speaking with BBC Hausa, CK Agu, his lawyer, said, “Even in the court session yesterday, we notified the judge about the efforts made to have him released on bail, but we did not receive any reply from the police.
“We applied to the court to release the student on bail on health grounds and the fact that he will sit for the exam on 5, December. The court has ordered the police to provide the bail application before it for consideration between Tuesday and Wednesday.”
Aminu, who hails from Azare in Bauchi State, is a final-year student of the Department of Environmental Management at Federal University, Dutse.
His arrest had sparked outrage, especially on social media, where many Nigerians said no one should be arrested for airing their views.
Meanwhile, his parents have since tendered apology to the First Lady and demanded his release.
The president’s wife is yet to comment on the matter.
