A Federal High Court in Abuja has struck out charges against 76 individuals who were arrested and prosecuted in connection with the nationwide #EndBadGovernance protests.
The decision to discontinue the prosecution comes after President Bola Tinubu directed the termination of charges against the accused, many of whom are minors.
The trial judge, Justice Obiora Egwuatu, made the ruling after the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, applied to discontinue the suit.
Fagbemi was represented by the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF), Mohammed Abubakar.
During the court session, Abubakar invoked Section 174 of the 1999 Constitution, which grants the AGF the authority to take over and discontinue any criminal proceedings initiated by other bodies, including the Inspector General of Police.
After Justice Egwuatu’s request was granted, the AGF requested that the 119 accused persons’ trials be halted under the same section of the Constitution.
Justice Egwuatu granted the request and dismissed the charges after no objections were raised by the accused’s lawyers.
The accused persons were not present in court, but the judge ordered their immediate release from prison.
