The Court of Appeal, Abuja, on Wednesday fixed November 1 for definite hearing of an appeal filed by a serving member of the National Assembly, Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume.
Ndume is facing terrorism related charges before the Federal High Court, Abuja.
He is accused of sponsoring the Boko Haram sect, and failing to disclose the cell phone number of a spokesman of the sect, Ali Sanda Umar Konduga, which was in his (Ndume’s) possession.
Ndume is appealing two court rulings delivered on December 11 and 12, 2012.
The trial judge, Justice Gabriel Kolawole had in both rulings admitted, as evidence against Ndume, alleged call logs from a telephone firm, which indicated that the Senator had telephone conversation with Konduga.
Justice Kolawole also admitted in evidence certain digital video discs (DVDs) containing call-data records, including findings based on investigations carried out by a Special Investigation Panel (SIP), of the State Security Service (SSS).
SSS operatives, who investigated the case, had, before the ruling, told the trial court that there were 73 instances of communication between Ndume and Konduga.
A Nokia E7 phone allegedly belonging to Ndume, was said to have been used in communicating with Konduga, whose phone identity the SSS gave as Nokia 2700.
In his appeal, Ndume wants the appellate court to invalidate the admitted evidence on the ground that the trial judge erred in law when he admitted the non admissible materials.
The Senator described the admitted materials as radically and fundamentally against him.
Before the court chose the new hearing date, appellant’s lawyer, Rickey Tarfa (SAN) withdrew a motion he had filed seeking that his client’s trial before the Justice Kolawole be stayed pending the determination of his appeal.
He withdrew the motion filed on February 20 this year to enable the court deal with the substantive appeal, because parties have filed their briefs in relation to the main appeal.
The three-man panel, headed by Justice Amiru Sanusi consequently struck out the motion.
