…Slams N100m On IGP, NPF, PSC
A Federal High Court sitting in Osogbo on Monday ruled that the sealing of the offices of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC) and the arrest of staff of the commission in the build-up to the February 22 local government election were unlawful.
The court also slammed N100 million in damages against the Inspector-General of Police, the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and the Police Service Commission (PSC) for breaching the law in the attempt to stop the February 22, 2025, local government election in Osun state.
Delivering judgment in the suit marked FHC/OS/CS/41/2025, Honourable Justice A. A Demi-Ajayi held that the Police authority failed to provide any law broken to warrant its action.
The judge noted that all the evidence presented before the court showed that the election was held in compliance with the relevant sections of the Electoral Act, 2022, and other enabling laws, and leaves the Police with no legal justification to interfere with the process.
The suit, which has the OSSIEC and its Chairman, Barrister Hashim Abioye as claimants, had prayed the court to hold that the action of the Inspector-General of Police and officers of the Nigerian Police in sealing off the commission’s Head office and offices across the state a few hours to the local governments election in the state, the threat to arrest OSSIEC Chairman, and eventually arrests of ad-hoc officers engaged by it, was unlawful.
The claimants asked the court to determine “whether the plaintiffs, generally, severally and variously, are not entitled to enjoy their fundamental rights to liberty, right to private life, right to dignity of human person and right to own movable and immovable property as enshrined under Chapter IV of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria (as amended ) and African Charter on Human and People’s Rights.”
They also contended that the action of the Police reflected partisanship and urged the court to declare the arrest and detention of staff of the Commission in the build-up to the February 22, 2025, Local Governments election as illegal and unlawful, “while the threat of further arrest and/or continuing detention of the plaintiffs’ staff by the defendants is illegal, unlawful.”
The claimants want the court to restrain the IGP or any of its agents from continuing to overreach its power by interfering with the Commission’s lawful duties, pleading with the court to grant its request in the interest of justice.
However, the defendant acknowledged the sealing off of the offices of OSSIEC and the arrest of its staff, saying the step was a preemptive move to stop the commission of a crime.
In an affidavit deposed to by Inspector Ogunmokun Abiodun, the Police noted that its action was not carried out arbitrarily but “was founded on the credible suspicion their engagement in actions deemed to have violated the Electoral laws and other applicable laws as opposed to the averment contained in paragraph 14 of the plaintiffs’ affidavit.”
He contended that the claimants exaggerated the development as the Police only performed their duty of ensuring peace and order, urging the court to dismiss the suit for being frivolous.
He denied the partisanship allegation raised against the IGP and the Police authority by the plaintiffs, noting that it was acting within the scope of constitutional and statutory duties.
