Drama as police assaults lawyer in Ogun court

…action is condemnable, reprehensible, unprofessional —NBA Chairman, Otta

By Tobi Adetunji.

The Police officer attached to Lagos zone 2  has  assaulted  a lawyer right within the premises of the High Court Ota in Ogun State.

The unfortunate incident which happened yesterday was investigated by Nigerian Newsdirect.

The  Assaulted  legal practitioner, Barrister Fatoki Olusegun a member of Nigeria Bar Association Ikeja Branch was said to have stepped out of the court  in response to the call from one of his clients when he was grabbed, harassed, assaulted  and pounced on by the  zone 2 police officers of Anti-kidnapping unit led by one Taofeek Olokede who could not proffer warrant of arrest on request.

Narrating his ordeal to our correspondent, he said, “I was just subjected to public ridicule by the Police who rendered me almost half naked in  full legal attire for several hours just because i was discharging my professional duty to my client. It is sad. Even not in the dark days of Abacha when we were facing armoured tanks in our famous engagements with the military  was i subjected to such humiliation and public embarrassment.”

On further interrogation, Olusegun revealed that he is the Counsel to the Ajibode community who had been in long battle on land dispute with other communities. which is still a subject of litigation.

He said, “The land was on Ajibode land. Ojusango was about 22 kilometers to Ajibode. The AJIBODE/Tigbo-Ilu Community is a land owning community that starts from Ajibode Village to Ewekoro.

“The Government acquired Ewekoro Cement land from Ajibode/Tigbo Ilu. Government also acquired Coker Farm Settlement from the same Tigbo – Ilu. There are judgments to prove this. This is before the LUTH acquisition which is also from Ajibode/Tigbo-Ilu. Ojusango happens to be one of the villages on Ajibode/ Tigbo land.

“When the land  acquired by LUTH was no longer utilized for the purpose for which it was acquired, it was claimed that the land was reallocated to 13 communities who were majorly customary tenants of Ajibode.

“He mentioned that Ojusango is one of the customary tenants of the Ajibode Community.”

According to him, he  contested the redistribution  on the basis that where a land acquired is not used for the purpose it was acquired, the land revert back automatically to its original owner.

“When we saw the Originating Summons for Possession filed by the Ojusango People based on the C of O purportedly given to them, we brought an application for joinder.

“By  the rules of the Court, anybody who claims to have interest in the suit brought under Order 53 and wish to defend the issue ought to be joined. But the court, for a reason best known to the judge, refused the application,” he stressed.

“We then filed a suit to Challenge redistribution of our land amongst 13 communities and essentially our customary tenant. The Ojusango people filed their defence with counter claim.

“They later brought application to challenge the suit as an abuse, the court then struck out the case on the basis that it abuses the process of the court.

“Dissatisfied, we filed our appeal. Initially they were lying that we did not have any appeal but when the appeal was mentioned to the Deputy commissioner of Police, he sent to confirm the existence of the appeal and the Appeal was so confirmed. And everybody was asked to await the outcome of the appeal.

“ In the interim, while we were denied the right to join the originating summons for possession, another community, Isorosi was permitted to join. So after refusing our application for joinder, the case in which we were refused joinder still went on between the Ojusango and the Isorosi. The judge later decided that the issue in the matter could not be resolved by originating summons and the struck out the case but with a caveat that they can file another suit.

“This led to the filing of Suit No. HCT/10/ 2013 by the Ojusango people. The implication of this is that our application for joinder is an interlocutory application where the right of the parties cannot determine and was never determined.

“ The suit No. HCT/10/2013 was filed against or by Isorosi people and Ajibode was never a party to the case. The Ojusango and Isorosi later went for settlement and the terms of settlement was adopted as the judgment of the court. Ajibode was never a party to the case.

“Ojusango people claimed to have executed the judgment to Ajibode land and this was resisted. This resistance led to invitations to the Police where we always maintained that there is no judgment against our people declaring Ojusango people as the owner of Ajibode land. The claim of execution of a judgment against our client who were never party to the case led to a number of cases currently pending both at the High Court and the Magistrate court.

“This is because Ojusango was just jumping from one Police station to the other seeking the interpretation of the judgment against Isorosi against Ajibode. And the Police for reasons best known to them were always ready tool to go with the Ojusangos”  he said

When our correspondent reach out to the Chairman  Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) OTA branch, Barrister Josephy Ogunniyi.

He acknowledged he is aware of the unfortunate incident,  but decried the lack of finesse and unprofessionalism in which the Police comport themselves.

He said,  “Everyone knows that when we are talking about crime, no one is above the law. Be it a lawyer or any profession as the case may be.

“What we detest is if there is any crime or allegation of crime, the best approach is to make a formal invitation and serve whosoever involved to show up.”

All efforts to reach the Public Relation Officer Lagos zone 2 proved abortive.