The Department of State Services (DSS) has been charged with a new fundamental human rights infringement for allegedly serially violating the constitutional rights of 12 allies of Yoruba nation advocate, Mr Sunday Adeyemo.
The 12 aides are requesting that the court issue an order granting the DSS N100 million in aggravated and exemplary damages.
Amongst other reliefs, the aides are praying for “a declaration that the applicants have not committed any offence known to law that will warrant intimidation, harassment, and threats of persecution and degradation of their human person by the respondents violating the law.
“A declaration that the detention of the detention of the applicants by the respondent beyond 48 hours as entrenched by the constitution is illegal and violates the applicants right to be tried within a reasonable time.”
They further want a declaration that the respondent’s media parade of the applicants without a court conviction was illegal and illegitimate, as it infringed their fundamental rights to human dignity, defamation of character, and innocence, as stipulated in Nigeria’s 1999 constitution, as amended.
When the case was brought before Justice Obiora Egwuatu on Wednesday, the counsel for the aides, Mr Pelumi Olajengbesi, informed the court that they were instructed to serve their process on the DSS at the last adjourned date, and that they had already done so.
Idowu Awo, a lawyer for the DSS, stated to the court that they had received the aides’ process and that they had also submitted their counter-affidavit on September 6.
Awo, on the other hand, informed the court that his colleague, who was scheduled to appear with him in the case, was directed to deliver the case file to court on September 7.
He claimed the lady boarded a car that, unbeknownst to her, belonged to armed robbers of the “one chance” variety.
The armed thieves took everything of her stuff, including the case file, according to the attorney.
He further told the court that he had already applied to the Process Registry for a Certified True Copy of the processes and that he was not in court with any copies to serve the petitioners.
As a result, Awo requested an adjournment so that he could collect the CTC and serve the counter-affidavit on the Igboho aides’ lawyer.
The lawyer for the aides agreed to the postponement.
The matter would not be resolved during the court holiday, which ends in a week, according to Justice Egwuatu.
Following that, he ordered that the case be returned to the court registry to be reassigned, as it is customary for things before the vacation court to be reallocated when the vacation is over.