By Sodiq Adelakun
The Supreme Court has formally brought to an end the long-standing murder case of Alhaja Kudirat Abiola, dismissing Lagos State Government’s attempt to reopen the prosecution of Major Hamza Al-Mustapha (retd.).
In a unanimous ruling on Thursday, a five-member panel held that Lagos State effectively abandoned its appeal against Al-Mustapha’s 2013 acquittal by failing to take any legal action for over nine years.
Al-Mustapha, former Chief Security Officer to late military ruler General Sani Abacha, had faced trial for the assassination of Kudirat Abiola, wife of presumed June 12, 1993, presidential election winner Chief MKO Abiola, who was killed in Lagos on June 4, 1996, during nationwide protests over the annulled election.
Delivering the judgment, Justice Uwani Aba-Aji criticised Lagos State for its “inexcusable” inaction despite being granted permission in 2014 to pursue the appeal.
The court noted that the state neither filed a notice of appeal nor engaged with the court in any meaningful way.
Al-Mustapha’s lawyer, Paul Daudu (SAN), had argued that the state’s conduct clearly showed a lack of interest in continuing the case and urged the court to dismiss the appeal on grounds of abandonment.
The Supreme Court agreed, emphasising that nine years was ample time for the state to act and confirming that failure to do so justified dismissal. A related appeal filed by Lagos State was also struck out on the same basis.
The ruling effectively upholds the Court of Appeal’s 2013 decision, which acquitted Al-Mustapha, Mohammed Abacha, and Lateef Shofolahan of the charges due to weak and unreliable evidence, closing all legal efforts to reopen the case nearly 30 years after Kudirat Abiola’s assassination.
