Two sons of late Moshood Abiola, winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, Kassim and Aliyu, who were arrested and detained over a robbery incident that took place at their father’s residence on September 2, have approached the High Court of Lagos State in the Ikeja Judicial Division for the enforcement of their fundamental rights.
The duo, who applied for the enforcement of their rights to personal liberty, dignity of person, right to private and family life, as well as right to freedom of movement, told the court that they were unlawfully arrested and detained at the Special Anti-Robbery Squad in Ikeja, following a complaint that was lodged by their step-mum, Adebisi Abiola, after the robbery incident.
The Lagos State Commissioner of Police was cited as the sole respondent in the suit the applicants filed through their lawyer and human rights activist, Mike Ozekhome, SAN.
Specifically, they prayed the court to declare that “the arrest without warrant and subsequent and continuous dehumanization and detention of the Applicants since the 2nd September, 2020, by operatives of the Respondent on the alleged Complaint of one Mrs Adebisi Abiola, is illegal, unlawful, wrongful and constitutes a blatant violation of the Applicants’ fundamental rights as enshrined in Section 35 (1) (4) & (6), 37, 41 (1), 44 (1) and 46(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as altered, Sections 2, 3(1) (2), 17(1) (2), 18 (1) (2) (3), 19, 21 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law, Lagos State, 2015, and Articles 5, 6 & 14 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights Ratification and Enforcement Act Cap A9, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
“A declaration that the arrest and subsequent dehumanization and the continuous detention of the Applicants since the 2nd September, 2020, by operatives of the Respondent on the alleged Petition/Complaint of one Mrs Adebisi Abiola, without granting them administrative bail within 24 hours of their arrest, are illegal, wrongful, unlawful and constitutes a blatant violation of fundamental rights as enshrined in Section 35 (1) (4) & (6), 37, 41 (1), 44 (1) and 46(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as altered, Sections 2, 3(1) (2), 17(1) (2), 18 (1) (2) (3), 19, 21 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law, Lagos State, 2015, and Articles 5, 6 & 14 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights Ratification and Enforcement Act Cap A9, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
“A declaration that the Applicants are entitled to public apology and adequate compensation from the Respondent as provided for by section 35(6) and 46(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as altered, Sections 2, 3(1) (2), 17(1) (2), 18 (1) (2) (3), 19, 21 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law, Lagos State, 2015, for the blatant violation of the Applicants’ fundamental rights without following the due process of law.
As well as, “An order of this honourable court directing the Respondent and his operatives and agents to release forthwith the Applicants from the detention of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, detention center of the Respondent.
Aside from demanding for an apology, the Applicants equally asked for an order to compel the Respondent to pay them N100million as exemplary damages for the “wanton and grave violation” of their fundamental rights.
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