ABIDJAN ( Halbeeg News)-A court in Ivory Coast has jailed the country’s former Sports Minister for disseminating false news.
Alain Lobognan who is also lawmaker found guilty of engaging in activities that incited violence.
After the conclusion of the proceedings, the court slapped Lobognan with One-year jail term and a fine of 520 dollars.
According to BBC, Alain Lobognan had tweeted on 9 January that the state prosecutor had ordered the arrest of a fellow MP
The tweet had led to violent demonstrations and violent clashes that left several people injured.
Mr Lobognan, who has been on hunger strike for 10 days, believes the case is politically motivated, as reported by BBC.
His lawyer, Affoussiata Bamba Lamine, said the MP – who was detained on 15 January – intends to appeal against the verdict.
She added that it was clearly a political trial as her client was close to Guillaume Soro, a former rebel leader and prime minister, who is now the speaker of the National Assembly.
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