Shafi’u Tureta, Aminu Tambuwal an aide to former Sokoto State Governor Aminu Tambuwal, has been remanded in correctional custody pending the hearing of his bail application.
Tureta was arraigned on charges of disseminating media content deemed harmful to the reputation of Governor Ahmad Aliyu of Sokoto State. He is accused of spreading false and defamatory information about the current governor, actions that are alleged to violate the Penal Code.
The charges stem from an incident on July 18, 2024, when Tureta allegedly circulated videos showing the governor’s wife, Fatima Aliyu, spraying money at her birthday celebration despite the widespread hunger and hardship in the state. Additionally, he was accused of sharing a document that claimed the governor failed his Senior Secondary School Examination.
During the arraignment at Magistrate Court 1 on Monday, journalists were reportedly barred from the courtroom on the orders of the trial judge, Fati Hassan.
Tureta’s legal counsel, Al’Mustafa Abubakar, informed the press that his client denied the charges and had made an oral application for bail. The judge adjourned the ruling on the bail application until September 6, 2024, and ordered that Tureta be remanded in correctional custody until then.