Rights Violation: Court Orders Police to Pay N50m Damages to Abiola’s Wife

*To tender public apology in two national newspapers

Wale Igbintade

Justice Modupe Osho-Adebiyi of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Gudu, in Apo, Abuja, has ordered the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to pay N50 million damages to Prof. Zainab Duke Abiola, wife of the acclaimed winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, the late Chief MKO Abiola, for violation of her fundamental human rights.

Zainab Abiola had filed a fundamental human rights enforcement suit marked FCT/HC/CV/2431/2023 against the IGP and named the Nigeria Police Force, Inspector Teju Moses and Engineer Ibrahim (son of former IGP Usman Alkali Baba) as co defendants to the suit.

The applicant, (Zainab Abiola) had in her statement of claim, demanded for N500 million damages from the Defendants for the infringement on her rights.
Mrs. Abiola  had alleged amongst others that she was arrested in her nightgown, tortured and detained by officers and men of the IGP.
She added  that her detention between September 20 and September 23, 2022, without charging her to court was a violation of her rights, stating that the action of the defendants was unlawful and unconstitutional.

But the police and other defendants denied the allegations, and joined issues with Mrs Abiola.
The defendants further claimed that they did not know Mrs. Abiola while the plaintiff produced evidence before the court that she was appointed by the Police as the Chief Legal Consultant (CLC).

Delivering her judgement after listening to the parties, Justice Modupe Osho-Adebiyi held that the detention of Mrs. Abiola by the Defendants without arraigning her in court of competent jurisdiction was a gross violation of her right to personal liberty.
The judge also directed the IGP and other three defendants to tender a public apology to Mrs. Abiola in two of the national newspapers in pursuance of Section 35 (6) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

In the certified true copy of Enrolled Order of the judgement dated November 29, 2023, with the official stamp on December 19, 2023, obtained yesterday, Justice Osho-Adebiyi held, “ Upon the judgement delivered by this Honourable Court on 29th day of November, 2023, it is hereby ordered as follows:

“It is hereby declared that the detention of the applicant from the 20th day of September, 2022 to 23rd September, 2022, without arraigning her before a court of competent jurisdiction is a violation of the applicant’s right to personal liberty under section 35 of the constitution and is therefore unlawful and unconstitutional.
“It is further declared that the arrest of the applicant by the Defendants in her nightgown without giving her the opportunity to dress decently is an Infringement of her right to personal dignity it is more debasing and a further Infringement of her right to personal dignity when applicant was paraded in her nightgown. In the circumstances, the sum of N50,000,000.00 (Fifty Million Naira) only is awarded to the applicant as compensation against the 1′, 2., and 4” respondents jointly.
“The respondents are hereby ordered to tender a public – apology to the applicant in two of the National Daily e v ‘ Newspapers in pursuance of the provisions of section 35 (6) I of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).”