Hunger protester slams N300m suit on IG

A hunger protester, Babatunde Akande, has dragged the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, before a Federal High Court in Abuja over his prolonged detention without trial.

Akande said he was arrested while in church on September 1, 2024 for participating in the #Endbadgovernance protests held between August 1 and 10.

Akande alleged that since then he had been denied access to his family and had been held in the detention facility of the Intelligence Response Team in Abuja without trial.

In the fundamental rights enforcement suit marked: FHC/ABJ/ CS/ 1345 / 2024, filed on his behalf by his legal team, led by Deji Adeyanju, the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, the State Security Service and the  Attorney General of the Federation were listed as defendants.

Adeyanju said the continued detention of his client without arraigning him before a court of competent jurisdiction constituted a serious breach of his fundamental human rights as guaranteed under Chapter IV of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

He also asked the court to order the defendants to pay the applicant N300m as “general, exemplary and aggravated damages.”

Our correspondent gathered that the matter had yet to be assigned to a judge since September 11 when it was filed.

The Punch reports that the police had arraigned 10 activists in connection with the protest on September 2.

 The defendants were accused of  “treason, destabilising the country, intimidating the President and destroying the NCC in Kano,” among others.

Also, the Department of State Services disclosed plans to prosecute three protesters arrested in Kaduna.

All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.

Contact: [email protected]