By Our Reporter
In what appears to be lack of any tangible change in police conduct under the new Inspector of General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, the Nigeria Police is still involved in cases of harassment as an ongoing case before a Federal High court in Lagos indicates.
The case which is before Honourable Justice Allagoa of the Federal High Court, Lagos Division has the ex-wife of Mr Koye Odulate who is the maker of ALABUKUN pain killer, former Mrs Rihole Odulate, suing the Nigeria Police and Mr Odulate over harassment. In the suit Number FHC/L/CS/851/2022 and initially heard on January 31, 2023, lawyers to Ms Rihole, Ukiri & Lijadu, submitted that their client sought reliefs from the court over police harassment.
Listed in the suit as respondents along with Mr Odulate, are the Inspector General of Police, ASP Idris Rasheed (Officer In Charge Team 8 Zone 2 Command Onikan; CSP Uba Bangajiyaadam (O/C Monitoring Unit (MTU) Zone 2 H/Q Onikan; The Assistant Inspector General Of Police (Zone 2 Command Onikan); The Inspector General Of Police; The Nigeria Police Force; Mr Uche Wigwe; Wigwe & Partners, as well as the Attorney General Of The Federation.
At the July 20 2023 proceedings, Ukiri & Lijadu appeared for Ms Rihole, Babatunde Esan Esq. appeared for the 1st Respondent (Mr Odulate), M. A. Animashaun Esq. appeared for the 2nd – 6th Respondents (IG of Police and members of the Monitoring Unit) while O. D. Oyefeso Esq and O. A. Bello Esq. appeared for the 7th & 8th Respondents.
Recall that El-rufai News Magazine (ENM) reported that the origin of this suit was a UK court judgment ordering Mr Odulate to pay for the upkeep of his two children with Ms Rihole in a divorce case. However, lawyers to Ms Rihole have alleged that Mr Odulate has refused to obey the court order and has instead made false allegations to the police against his ex-wife. Subsequently, the police regularly detained members of Ms Rihole’s family as well as seized her properties located in Lagos. Since Mr Odulate made the allegations over a year ago, the police never brought forward any evidence and they continued to claim they were investigating.
According to lawyers to Ms Rihole the police engaged in acts of harassment despite a court order restraining them until the substantive matter is resolved in court. In a letter on police activities written to Justice Allagoa, the presiding judge at a High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos where the substantive case on harassment is being heard, lawyers to Ms Rihole allege that the Nigeria Police have consistently breached an existing court order restraining all parties involved in the harassment suit from taking further action against their client. According to the lawyers, the said court order was issued in August 2022 by Justice Akintayo Aluko who ordered that until the substantive suit on harassment was heard and judgment delivered, the parties in the suit should sheath their swords.
In their letter to Justice Allagoa dated February 23, 2023 and titled, “Notice Of Atrocities And Contemptuous Activities Of The Respondents In Disrespect And Contravention Of The Order Of This Honourable Court For Parties To Maintain Status Quo,” Ukiri & Lijadu stated as follows: “We refer to the order of this Honorable Court, Coram: Honorable Justice Aluko, made on 25th August 2022, wherein the Honorable Court ordered all the parties in this suit, including the Police, to maintain status quo ante bellum pending the final determination of the suit… We write to inform the Honourable Court of the contemptuous and vexatious acts of the Respondents (Mr Odulate and the Police) herein, in contravention of the valid order of the Honourable Court for parties to maintain status quo.”
The parties were in court on July 20, 2023 for further hearing on the police harassment suit. However, Justice Allagoa adjourned further hearing till October 2023.
