IPOB: Court Awards N60Million To Enslaved Woman, Others After Illegal Detention Over Alleged IPOB.
The court presided over by Justice Y. Haliyu on Thursday granted every relief sought in Okolie’s case.
Okolie was illegally detained and held in a cell by the Inspector General of Police Intelligence Response Team of the Nigeria Police Force for more than 150 days on bogus allegations of spying for the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
Haliyu in granting the originating motion and reliefs filed by Okolie awarded a total sum of n60,000,000 (sixty million naira) in punitive and general damages caused to her by the police.
He described the judgement as a timely birthday gift to him, as his birthday falls on the same day the judgement was delivered.
The fundamental rights enforcement case filed by Okolie and supported by more than 51 civil society groups was fixed for judgement on Thursday, June 23, 2022.
Okolie in the case filed at the FCT High Court was asking the court to mandate the respondents being the Attorney General of the Federation and the Nigeria Police Force to pay her the sum of N100,000,000,000.00 (One hundred billion naira) as general and punitive damages separately for infringing on her rights.
The reliefs and prayer in the said suit read thus:
“A DECLARATION of this honourable court, that the act of the Respondent in detaining the 1st applicant from the 13th June 2021 till date, without an order of any court permitting same, is a violation of the 1st Applicant’s right to a fair hearing and Personal Liberty as enshrined in articles 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act Chapter A9 LFN, 2004,” the court document read.
“A DECLARATION of this honourable court, that the act of the Respondent in detaining the 1ST applicant from the 13th June 2021, and beyond 71 (seventy-one) days till date, without an order of any court permitting same, is a violation of the 1ST Applicant’s right to a fair hearing and Personal Liberty as enshrined in articles 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act Chapter A9 LFN, 2004.
“A DECLARATION that the beating/slapping, torturing, physical assault and verbal/vulgar abuse of the Applicant by the 1st Respondent and the respondents IGP IRT officers, without the applicant committing any crime known to law whatsoever, is illegal, unconstitutional and amounts to a violation of the 1st Applicant’s right to fair hearing and Personal Liberty as enshrined in articles 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act Chapter A9 LFN, 2004.
“A DECLARATION that the usage of the Applicant by the respondent IGP IRT officers by sexually assaulting the 1st applicant, usage of the 1st applicant to wash the respondent officers clothes and usage of the applicant to cook for the respondents IGP IRT officers, even when the applicant was in the illegal custody of the respondent, and without the applicant committing any crime known to law whatsoever, is illegal, unconstitutional and amounts to a violation of the Applicant’s right to fair hearing and Personal Liberty as enshrined in Section 35 & 36 of the Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and articles 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act Chapter A9 LFN, 2004.
“AN ORDER of this Honourable Court restraining the Respondent to desist from engaging in untoward, violent and irrational conducts against the 1st Applicant.
“AN Order of this honourable court, granting bail to the 1st applicant on liberal terms to wit: unconditionally and conditionally pending the time the respondent deems it fit, to charge the 1st applicant to court in this regard.
“AN ORDER of this Honourable Court mandating the Respondent to pay the 1st Applicant the sum of N100,000,000,000.00 (One Hundred Billion Naira) as general and punitive damages separately for infringing on the rights of the 1st applicant.
“AN ORDER of this Honourable Court mandating the Respondent to pay the 1st Applicant the sum of N50,000,000.00 (Fifty Million Naira) as punitive damages for its recklessness, bias, malice, failure to perform its statutory duty when the Respondents officers within his knowledge, wholly infringed on the fundamental rights of the 1st Applicant in this regard. ”
According to the court document, Okolie, aged 21 at the time, went missing on June 13, 2021, while running an errand in Imo state, “and never returned home on that day”.
The suit filed in affidavit form read in part, “That from the 17th June 2021, the family members of Glory Okolie started searching frantically for the first applicant in hospitals, churches, and mosque, all to no avail.
“That the family members, in search of the 1st applicant actually approached the Owerri command of Nigeria Police Force, who charged the uncle of the 1st applicant, the sum of N50,000,00k to track vide telephone tracking the last known address of the 1st applicant.
“That the phone tracking above showed that the 1st applicant was detained by the respondent IGP IRT officers at their Owerri Tiger base unit of the respondent, and when the uncle approached this office, the respondent Owerri Tiger base unit denied ever seeing Glory Okolie.”
