By Elsie Udoh
The Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has made a U-turn regarding a decision to compensate one Clement Adedotun, who was tortured by security officers during the EndSars anniversary rally.
Adedokun, an Uber driver, who was carrying a passenger to Lagos Mainland when he encountered a gridlock at the Lekki Toll-Gate during the October 2021 EndSars Memorial rally, was tortured and pepper-sprayed by the Lagos State Neighborhood Safety Agency (LNSA) and police officers.
Following his assault, the Lagos state government filed an appeal against the judgement ordering the state and the police to give N5 million compensation to Adedotun.
This appeal was brought to the notice of Sanwo-Olu by human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong, who demanded that the State comply with the judgment. However, the governor refused to act on the demand, stating that there was no evidence that the Uber driver was tortured.
In a dramatic turn of events, Sanwo-Olu, on Saturday, took to his social media pages to order the Attorney General to comply with the court’s ruling to compensate the Uber driver.
“I recently became aware of the case involving Mr Clement Adedotun and the judgement by the Federal High Court, and I understand the impact this legal battle has had on him.
“After reviewing Mr Clement’s case, I’ve directed the Honorable Attorney General to set up a meeting and pay him the compensation awarded by the Court.
“Although the State Government has appealed the ruling, I’ve interceded in this instance in the interest of the public good, and requested that the State’s Attorney General comply with the court’s ruling,” he wrote.
The governor further lauded the efforts of all parties who sought justice and assured Lagosians of his commitment towards upholding their rights.
