Enahoro To Appeal Against 15-Year Gaol Term

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30231, 9 September 1963, Page 13

Enahoro To Appeal Against 15-Year Gaol Term

(N.Z.P. A.-Reuter—Copyright) LAGOS, September 7. Anthony Enahoro, the former chief, who was deported from Britain after a political storm last May, was gaoled for 15 years on a treason charge today, but his lawyers said they would lodge an appeal.

Enahoro, a 40-year-old deputy leader of the opposition Action Group Party, was sentenced on three counts —treasonable felony, conspiracy to commit a felony and contravening the Firearms Act.

His Nigerian lawyers said they would appeal both against the judgment given in the Lagos High Court by Judge Sigismund Lambo and the sentence. -

Enahoro was sentenced to 12 years’ goal on the first count, three years on the second and one on the third. The first and second senten-

ces will run consecutively and the third concurrently, His wife, Helen, who sat 15 feet away from her husband, wiped a tear from her eye as the Judge passed sentence. Enahoro was whisked back to Kirikiri gaol immediately after sentence was passed, No-one else was allowed to leave the packed courtroom for half an hour.

More than 200 steel-helmet-ed riot police, many of them carrying sidearms, tear-gas pistols or automatic rifles, patrolled outside the Court and guarded steel crash barriers. Police also guarded the main Lagos prison, less than a mile away from the courtroom where Enahoro was sentenced, There, the Action Group Party Leader, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, is awaiting a verdict from another court on similar charges. He and 20 others were also charged with plotting to overthrow the Nigerian Government. Ending his two and a half hour judgment, Judge Larnbo, told Enahoro: “I do not propose to inflict a life sentence, but I would be failing in my duty if I did not inflict a punishment which will serve as a deterrent to those who might be disposed to commit this sort of crime.” Enahoro was impassive and appeared unmoved as sentence was passed. He had pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

Enahoro's trial opened on June 24 and ended on August 1. He was defended by a British -barrister. Mr Alun Davis, Q.C., who left after the end of the trial. Enahoro had originally chosen Mr Dingle Foot, Q.C.. a British Labour member of Parliament and barrister, to defend him, but the Nigerian Government refused to allow Mr Foot to enter Nigeria. Judge Lambo said that after careful deliberation he had

come to certain conclusions, including: (1) There had been a plan to overthrow the Federal Government in September last year. (2) Enahoro had been party to the plan. (3) Nigerians had been sent for military training in Ghana for subversive activities.

(4) Arrangements had been made to effect the overthrow of the Government. The Judge described the defence ease “a bundle of lies.”