Barr. Ejike Ugwu, the lawyer of Obiajulu Uja, the passenger aboard Ibom Air flight, who caused a stir by spewing anti-President-elect, Bola Tinubu remark, and got himself into trouble with the law has shared insight into the motive for his client’s act.
Uja aboard an Ibom Air flight heading to Lagos on March 31 at around 6.00pm, while the plane was yet to take off stood in the middle to address co-passengers.
“You all are sitting here, and Tinubu is about to be sworn in as President. Tinubu must never be sworn in. He must never be President. I am a PhD holder in law and I’ll keep saying what I am saying,” said to the chagrin of others on the plane.
Considered a security risk, he was heard calling on Obidients to rescue him while being dragged out of the flight.
All the moments were captured by enthusiasts on the plane and posted online with criminal intimidation and public disturbance charges now preferred against him.
His lawyer in an interview making the rounds said prosecuting Uja is not okay, claiming the former Zenith Bank staff member has problem with his mental health and kidney, and consequently has been behaving irrationally.
In his account, lawyer Ugwu said, “The DPO said the man will be charged on Monday; this is a man that we said is mentally ill. Have you conducted any medical examination on him to know whether he is mentally fit to be charged to court? On what grounds are you charging?
“The man worked with Zenith Bank until he developed some health issues. Some days ago, Riz Continental Hotel, Abuja, chased him away from the hotel because of his mental instability.
“He bought three tickets on Friday for Lagos State, and had issues with almost all the airlines before he eventually boarded Ibom Air.
“When we asked him what happened, he told us that he wanted to market his products and that he was just trying to get the attention of the passengers when he raised the issue of Asiwaju will not be sworn in.
“If you go through his social media, you will understand that he is not even a member of the Obedient movement. But the long and short of it is that the man is mentally unstable.
“After he was arrested and the DPO saw reports in the media, the DPO confided in me that the man is not a normal person.
“It’s just the system; I told the DPO that you do not even need a medical certificate from the family but as an investigator, employ the services of a psychiatrist to confirm the mental stability of the man. But as I speak with you, I left the police station around 5pm and we have not seen the DPO today in the station.
“I told the DPO that this man needs medical attention immediately before the whole system will collapse.
“He has a kidney problem; if you see his legs you will see how swollen they are. You can only investigate someone that is alive.”
