Lagos State judicial panel on restitution for victims of SARS related abuses and other matters awards N19, 250, 000 naira compensation to 6 petitioners as it warns litigants against dragging it’s name into scandal
The Lagos State judicial panel on restitution for victims of SARS related abuses and other matters sitting in Lagos today Friday 24th September 2021 awarded a total sum of Nineteen million, two hundred and fifty thousand naira (N19, 250, 000) as monetary compensation among other recommendations to six petitioners for the infringement on their fundamental right to life and human dignity by the Nigeria police force, just as it dismissed a petition for lacking merit.
In the petition of Akinmade Akinrolabu vs the Nigeria police force, the petitioner was awarded the sum of one million five hundred naira as compensation. In another petition of Ezeh Nnamdi Diedonne vs federal special anti robbery squad (FSARS), the petition was dismissed for lacking merit. In the petition of Sanusi Oluwakemi vs the Nigeria police force, the petitioner was awarded seven hundred and fifty thousand naira as compensation. In the petition of Patrick Ocheme Micheal vs the Nigeria police force, the petitioner was awarded compensation in the sum of three million naira, while in the case of Ayomide Oyewunmi vs the Nigeria police force, the petitioner was awarded compensation in the sum of one million naira. In the petition of the family of Adeshina Adeoshun vs the Nigeria police force, the petitioner family was awarded compensation in the sum of ten million naira for his killing alledgedly by the Nigeria police force Olosan division on the 20th of October 2020, the panel also recommended the arrest and prosecution of all the officers involved in the killing of the deceased just as it ordered the police to produce the corpse which was reported to have been taken away by policemen from the Olosan police station Mushin on the day of the incident. In the petition of Oluwatosin Temitope Odebode vs the Nigeria police force, the petitioner was awarded three million naira in compensation for brutality suffered in the hands of policemen.
In another incident which delayed the commencement of the panel proceedings today on resumption from it’s indefinite adjournment of sitting, the panel frowned at unwholesome practices by litigants which sought to drag the name of the panel into disrepute.
The panel informed the sitting through its chairman Justice Doris Okuwobi (Rtd.), that it had to intervene in the case of a petitioner who was awarded the sum of ten million naira as compensation, but from whom the counsel collected thirty percent with a promise that he wanted to give ten percent as appreciation to panel members. The counsel collected three million out of ten million naira awarded the petitioner as compensation for bodily injuries sustained from indiscriminate shooting by policemen at Ilasamaja, Lagos. The panel frowned at such irresponsible and criminal act alledged against the counsel by his client and made it clear that it does not collect commission from anybody for it’s assignment.
The panel stated that the conduct of the lawyer has been reported to the NBA which was present at the interrogation session on the matter at the panel chambers.
The panel also conducted hearings into the Lekki tollgate incident of 20th October 2020 by taking testimony from the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Maroko police station CSP Ganiyu Raji on the role of the Nigeria police force under his jurisdiction during the EndSARS protest. The DPO was cross examined by counsels.
The panel adjourned for the day.
