The co-founder of a Christian orphanage, who was imprisoned after being wrongly accused of operating an unlawful orphanage, has had his hearings in Nigeria's Kano state high court delayed again.
Du Merci orphanages in Kano and Kaduna states were founded in part by Professor Richard Solomon Musa Tarfa, a professor at the University of Kano. The Kano state Ministry of Women's Affairs and Social Development accused him of faking a certificate of registration. According to the Nigerian Voice, the trial has been postponed until February 22, 2022.
When called to testify at a court hearing on October 6, both the professor and a witness from his bank were able to provide bank account statements revealing payments to a director in the Ministry of Women's Affairs for the certificate.
The case was delayed to November 23, although the hearing barely lasted around twenty minutes. On September 27, the judge set a deadline of 21 days for each side's lawyers and prosecutors to present their cases to the court. However, despite the fact that Professor Tarfa's legal team had been able to submit their own case 17 days in advance, the prosecutor's legal team only filed their own case one day before the hearing on November 22 because they claimed they had forgotten to do so.
Backstory of his arrest
The International Christian Concern (ICC) said police stormed the orphanage on Christmas Day 2019 without a warrant and abducted all the children, despite the fact that sufficient paperwork was presented.
According to a CSW report, despite the fact that Du Merci orphanage was functioning legally, Professor Tarfa was imprisoned without bail, the orphanage was closed, and twenty-seven children were transported from Du Merci to government-run institutions in Kano and Kaduna states.
When his wife submitted evidence demonstrating the orphanage was properly registered with several government agencies, the accusation was then modified to 'criminal abduction of minors.'
On March 3, Professor Tarfa's counsel filed a lawsuit at the Kano State High Court for a review of his bail; however, the judge assigned with the case neglected to schedule a bail hearing despite many letters being addressed to the court. His attorney personally confronted the court in August, pleading for a date for a hearing. According to the judge, she will be out of town until the 15th of October for personal reasons.
Professor Tarfa's case file has also been sent to the High Court Chief Judge for reassignment. However the Chief Judge has gone on leave without reassigning the case. A petition appealing for Professor Tarfa's release has gained more than 1,000 signatures.
"The continuing delays in the case of Professor Tarfa are completely unacceptable, especially since that he is innocent of the excessive charges against him," CSW Founder President Mervyn Thomas said.
"Given the lengthy period he has already spent in arbitrary pre-trial detention, we call on the Kano State authorities to facilitate his immediate release without pre-condition, and to hold those responsible for unreasonable and unconstitutional delays in the judicial process to account."
Despite Nigeria's claim to secularism, the ICC maintains that Islamic Sharia law dominates the northern Nigerian enclave of Kano State. A religion's social and legal order, it added, may have a negative impact on religious minorities, such as Christians, when it obtains control of the government.
