A Katsina State resident, Aminu Sanda, popularly known as Nesta, has been detained and charged with treasonable felony over allegations that he destroyed campaign billboards bearing the image of President Bola Tinubu in Katsina State.
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Sanda was initially invited by the police in Katsina over allegations that he participated in pulling down the President’s billboards and also broke into the Katsina State Secretariat of the All Progressives Congress, APC, where he was accused of taking away ₦35 million.
He has, however, denied all the allegations against him, including claims that he destroyed Tinubu’s campaign materials or burgled the APC secretariat, describing the accusations as unfounded.
Following his detention in Katsina, Sanda was transferred to the Nigeria Police Force Headquarters in Abuja and subsequently brought before a Magistrate Court sitting in Jiwa, Federal Capital Territory, where the police sought his remand on allegations including treasonable felony.
The police reportedly approached the court through a motion ex parte, seeking an order to keep him in custody for two weeks to enable investigators to conclude their inquiries.
When Sanda’s lawyers appeared before the court on Tuesday to seek his release on bail, the police also filed another application asking for a further two-week extension of his remand.
The presiding Magistrate, Huzaifa Macchudo, reserved ruling on the bail application.
A source familiar with the proceedings said Sanda was arraigned on Tuesday and that the matter was adjourned to September 15, 2026, for ruling on the bail application filed by his counsel.
His lawyers have expressed concern that the reservation of ruling could leave him in custody while the police pursue an extension of the earlier remand order.
The treasonable felony charge has since attracted criticism from legal practitioners, who questioned whether the alleged destruction of political billboards could, without more, satisfy the ingredients of such a serious offence.
Human rights lawyer Hameed Ajibola Jimoh described the development as shocking, saying the alleged removal of a billboard appeared political in nature and did not ordinarily amount to treasonable felony.
“It’s shocking that removing a billboard would amount to a treasonable felony,” Jimoh said.
“Felony has a definition. Treason also has a definition. Removing a billboard is political.”
He maintained that the alleged conduct might raise other legal questions depending on the circumstances, but said the specific statutory provision relied upon by the prosecution would have to be examined before any conclusion could be reached.
“Such does not, to the best of my knowledge, amount to a treasonable felony, except we look at the section under which they are charging the person and what the law says,” he added.
Another Abuja-based legal practitioner, Barrister Abdurrahman Salis, similarly described the charge as surprising.
According to him, the alleged act of pulling down a presidential campaign billboard does not, on its face, fall within the recognised legal meaning of treason or treasonable felony.
“It is surprising. It would be surprising not only to a lawyer but even to a law student to see this kind of charge pressed against a person alleged to have pulled down the President’s billboard in Katsina State,” Salis said.
He stressed that treason and treasonable felony are distinct offences under Nigerian law and generally involve conduct significantly more serious than destruction of campaign materials.
“Under our laws, for an act to constitute an offence, it must be defined by law. The elements of that offence must be stated by law and the punishment must also be provided,” he said.
Salis explained that treasonable felony could involve an intention to unlawfully remove the President or a governor outside constitutional means, an intention to wage war against Nigeria, or conduct connected with instigating an armed invasion of the country.
“Under the treasonable felony provisions that we are talking about, there is nowhere that pulling down a presidential billboard is mentioned as a treasonable felony,” he said.
“If you look at it critically, pulling down a presidential billboard does not qualify as a treasonable felony under our laws.”
He added that the alleged destruction of the billboard could potentially amount to some other offence depending on the evidence and circumstances, but maintained that it was legally distinct from treason or treasonable felony.
The case has emerged against the backdrop of growing political tension within the Katsina State chapter of the APC ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The controversy reportedly began after campaign billboards bearing the images of President Tinubu and his Special Adviser on Political Affairs, Ibrahim Masari, were destroyed in parts of Katsina State.
The incident had earlier drawn national attention after two security aides attached to Katsina State Governor Umar Dikko Radda were reportedly invited to the Force Headquarters in Abuja for questioning in connection with the alleged destruction of the billboards.
Sanda was subsequently invited and detained over allegations linking him to the incident.
His defence has attracted particular attention because he reportedly described himself as the Katsina State Chairman of the Dikko/Tinubu Vanguard, a political support group backing President Tinubu.
He reportedly questioned why he would destroy campaign materials belonging to a President and political movement he claimed to support.
The matter is unfolding amid reported divisions within the Katsina APC, particularly between interests associated with Governor Radda’s political structure and influential federal-level politicians from the state, including Masari.
Some political observers have consequently interpreted the billboard controversy as part of the broader struggle for political influence and realignment in Katsina ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Sanda, however, remains an accused person and is presumed innocent unless and until found guilty by a competent court. His bail application is expected to be determined on September 15, while the police investigation into the allegations continues.
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