Yesterday, a Federal High Court in Lagos told the Lagos State government and the Nigeria Police to pay N5 million to Adedotun Clement, the Uber driver who was attacked, beaten, and embarrassed in public by officials of the State Neighbourhood Safety Agency and the Nigeria Police Force during the first anniversary of the #EndSARS protest in 2021.
On October 20, 2021, the one-year anniversary of the #EndSARS protest, Mr Clement was taking a passenger from the Island to the Mainland when he ran into the protest at the Lekki Toll Gate. The protest was stopped by officials from Lagos State and the police.
When police and officers from the Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Agency fired tear gas canisters at peaceful protesters and arrested some of them, chaos broke out. Clement temporarily left his car and ran for his life, like other drivers.
But when he went back to get his car, the officers attacked, dragged, tortured, and roughed him up. They didn’t care that he was an Uber driver and only wanted to get his car back.
The attack was caught on video, and the news reported on it.
In their attempt to force him into the car of the Lagos State Taskforce, also known as “Black Maria,” officials from Lagos State and the police used pepper spray on Clement, who was crying for help.
After the viral video got a lot of negative attention, Mr Inibehe Effiong, a human rights lawyer and activist in Lagos, took up the case and sued the Lagos State Government, the Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Agency, the Attorney General of Lagos, and the Nigeria Police.
In the fundamental rights case with case number FHC/CS/1862/2021, Justice A. L. Allagoa ruled that the way the applicant was treated violated his right to dignity and gave him N5 million as compensation.
The court was angry that people from the Lagos State Government and the police beat and hurt Clement.
In response to the decision, the applicant’s lawyer, Mr Effiong, thanked the court for upholding his client’s rights.
Effiong also asked the governor of Lagos State, Mr Babjide Sanwolu, to follow the court’s decision and pay compensation. This would be in line with his public statement that he had already paid compensation to #EndSARS victims and would show Lagosians that he believes in human rights.
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