There was a mild drama at Gezawa High
Court, Kano, yesterday as a girl-bride, Wasila
Tasi, suspected to have killed her husband
and three others in April, failed to utter a word in
court during her trial.
The high profile culpable homicide case that
attracted the attention of the human rights
community was nearly stalled by refusal of the
14-year-old suspect to speak.
Consequently, the presiding judge, Justice
Muhammad Yahaya was compelled to enter a
plea of ‘not guilty’ on her behalf shortly after the
charged sheet was read and explained to her in
the local dialect.
Wasila, looking perturbed at the dock, was
repeatedly asked whether she understood the
content of what was read before her, but each
time she failed to utter a word as the court
registrar ran through the four-count charge of
culpable homicide punishable by death under
Section 221 A of the Penal Code.
The decision of the court to enter a plea of not
guilty on her behalf revived the case as the
prosecution counsel, Lamido Abba Soron Dinki,
offered to line up five witnesses to prove the
merit of the case.
The presiding judge, therefore, adjourned the
matter to November 26 and 27 to continue
hearing and also ordered that the suspect be
returned to remand home.
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