Judge Warns Lagos CP over Disobedience to Court Order

Wale Igbintade

Justice Akintayo Aluko of the Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered the Lagos State Commissioner of Police to appear before the court to explain why an order for committer should not be made against him for violating court order without any justification.

The judge made the order in a suit number: FHC/L/CS/471/2021 filed by the applicant, Mr. Taju Alade, against the Inspector-General of Police (IG), COP; DPO; and DCO Isolo Division, Fambegbe Stephen; Investigative Police Officer (IPO) of the division, ASP Ganiyu, and the Nigeria Police Commission (NPC) as first to sixth respondents.

Justice Aluko also ordered the IG to produce in court the state Commissioner of Police and the other officers, who are the co-respondents, for contempt proceedings over alleged violation of the court order.

The matter was formerly before Justice M. A. Onyetenu, who made the March 26, 2021, order.

Alade, a truck driver in the employment of Mumean Lawal, commenced the suit before Justice Onyetenu on March 10, 2021, through his counsel, Love Okwuokei.

He averred that he was engaged by Crowd Appeal Nigerian Limited to convey paper materials from Trade Fair to Alagbado in Lagos State on December 21, 2020.

On his way to deliver the goods, while on Ago Road in Lagos he observed electrical cable on the road and to avoid running over a live wire, he pulled over and asked bystanders if it was safe to drive over the cables, but the policemen from Isolo Police Division arrested him on the allegation that he hit an electric pole with his truck.

He was subsequently detained at the station “in an overcrowded cell” for over 48 hours without being charged at the nearby magistrate or high court, while his truck “with goods worth millions of naira in the truck” were seized.

“I was slapped, shoved, verbally and physically abused by some cellmates for ‘coming into the cell empty-handed’. I have never in my life felt so bullied, humiliated and dehumanised,” Alade noted in his originating application.

He approached the court via an ex parte application and sought six prayers, including an order for the immediate release of the truck, N10million as general damages, and N500,000 as cost of the action.

Ruling on his application on March 26, 2021, Justice Onyetenu ordered the truck to be released pending the hearing and determination of the suit.

She further restrained the respondents from further arresting the applicant and interfering with his means of livelihood, or interfering with his right to liberty and freedom of movement.

But the respondents failed to comply following which the respondents initiated contempt proceedings against the police before Justice Aluko, to whom the case was later transferred.

At the commencement of proceedings last Friday, the Judge slammed the police.

Justice Aluko held that: “I have gone through the records and found that the respondents have been duly served with the Certified True Copy of the order of this court which directed them to release the truck.

“I have also found that both forms 48 and 49 have been duly served on the IG and other respondents even though there is evidence of service of the order of this court and forms 48 and 49 being served on the respondents. I don’t want to conclude that the IG and the Lagos State Commissioner of Police would wrongly flout the order of this court.

“I am sure that the IG and the Commissioner are well aware of their responsibilities and duties under the constitution to enforce orders of this court in any part of the federation.

“For this reason, I will want to give the IG, under whose supervision the Commissioner of Police and other respondents operate, the benefit of the doubt and another opportunity to act in compliance with the order of this court and Section 287(3) of the 1999 Constitution as amended.

“Consequently, I hereby order the IG to, without any further delay, act in compliance with the order of this court made on March 26, 2021, and Section 287(3) of the constitution, and by so doing, to produce the Lagos State Commissioner of Police and the other officers who are the co-respondents in court at the next adjourned date for them to show the court why an order for committer should not be made against them for violating the order of this court without any justification.”

The court directed that the copy should be served on all the respondents.

Meanwhile, Justice Aluko adjourned further proceedings till December 7, 2021.