A High Court sitting in Ibadan, Oyo State, on Friday granted a relief sought by the Yoruba Nation activist, Sunday Adeyemo, a.k.a Sunday Igboho and ordered the Federal Government to pay him N20 billion for breaching his fundamental rights.
The court also dismissed an application filed by the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, challenging its jurisdiction to hear allegations against Federal Government agencies.
The court was expected to deliver judgement or ruling on the N500 billion fundamental human rights case instituted by the Yoruba Nation activist, Sunday Adeyemo, a.k.a Sunday Igboho, against the FG and the Department of State Services.
Igboho through his lawyer, Yomi Alliyu, filed a suit challenging the invasion of his house in Ibadan, on July 1, by operatives of the DSS.
Igboho is, among others, seeking an order of the court to declare the invasion of his residence by DSS operatives as illegal and an infringement on his fundamental human rights.
The three respondents in the case are the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), as the first respondent; the DSS as the second respondent; and the Director of DSS in Oyo State as the third respondent.
Counsel for the AGF, Abubakar Abdullahi, had filed an application challenging the ability of a state High Court to hear the activities of the federal agencies.
Citing several judgements by the Supreme and Appeal courts in respect of the ability of the state high court to hear such cases, Justice Ladiran Akintola said the invasion of the house of the applicant violated his fundamental human rights as stipulated in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended.
He was quoted as saying, “Unfortunately, this court is not a Father Christmas and cannot award the sum of N500 billion as requested by the applicant, but the court retrained the respondent from arresting or harassing the applicant.
“He has right to his free movement as contained in Section 35.1 (a)(b) of the 1999 Constitution as amended.”
