Court fixes Aug. 20 to determine fresh charges against ex-NBA Shendam chairman

By Dele Obanla

The Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed August 20 to determine the propriety of fresh charges brought against former Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Shendam Branch, Plateau State, Barrister Gabriel Nkup Tsenyen.

Justice Joyce Abdulmalik fixed the date after Tsenyen’s counsel challenged the prosecution’s decision to file a fresh two-count charge against his client.

Tsenyen, who is also a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Plateau State, had been brought before the court by the Department of State Services (DSS) for arraignment on allegations bordering on cyberstalking and incitement to breach public peace.

However, his lead counsel, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Emmanuel Esene, objected to the fresh charges, raising issues of duplicity of charges and abuse of court process.

According to Tsenyen, the defence informed the court that an earlier four-count charge involving the defendant was already pending before another court.

He said the prosecution had subsequently taken two of the counts from the earlier charge and filed them as a separate two-count charge in the instant proceedings.

The development prompted Justice Abdulmalik to request a copy of the earlier charge to enable the court examine the issue.

The document was produced before the court by the defence.

The judge also requested the record of proceedings in the earlier case to determine the relationship between the two sets of charges.

The defence, however, said the proceedings record was not immediately available to them because the fresh charge had come as a surprise.

Justice Abdulmalik consequently adjourned the matter until August 20 for the relevant record to be produced and the issue concerning the propriety of the fresh charges to be considered.

Tsenyen was not remanded in DSS custody. He remained on administrative bail and subsequently left the court premises and drove home.

The charges
The fresh charge contains two counts.
In count one, the prosecution alleged that Tsenyen, in May 2026, sent a publication through the Ngootuguut local community WhatsApp platform alleging that the entire community was involved in a plot to eliminate him.

The prosecution alleged that he knew the publication to be false but circulated it with the intention of causing annoyance, insult, criminal intimidation, enmity, hatred, ill will and needless anxiety in the community.

The prosecution said the alleged offence contravened Section 24(1) of the Cybercrimes (Prevention, Prohibition, etc.) Act, 2015, as amended.

In count two, the prosecution alleged that Tsenyen circulated the publication with the intention of inciting or causing a breach of public peace.

The prosecution said the alleged offence was contrary to and punishable under Section 114 of the Penal Code Act, 2004.

The charges were filed by Rotimi Iseoluwa Oyedepo, Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation.

The latest proceedings arose from an attempt by the prosecution to arraign Tsenyen on the two-count charge.

The defence has challenged the fresh proceedings, contending that the allegations are already covered by an earlier four-count charge pending before another court.

The central issue before Justice Abdulmalik is therefore whether the prosecution’s decision to separate two counts from the earlier charge and file them afresh constitutes duplicity of charges or an abuse of the court process.

The court is expected to examine the earlier charge and relevant proceedings before determining the way forward on August 20.