A federal high court in Lagos has ordered the Lagos state government and Nigeria Police Force (NPF) to pay N5 million as compensation to Adedotun Clement.
In October 2021, Clement, a driver of a cab-hailing service, was manhandled by the Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Agency (LNSA) and police officers during the #EndSARSMemorial rally at Lekki tollgate.
Viral videos showed Clement being manhandled by LNSA personnel and police officers during the demonstration.
The #EndSARSMemorial rally was organised to mark a year since many citizens took to the streets to protest against police brutality under the #EndSARS movement.
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The incident sparked outrage on social media as many Nigerians called for the arrest and prosecution of the officers.
Amid the outrage, the LNSA announced that it had suspended the officers involved in the assault of the driver, and apologised to the victim.
However, Clement demanded N500 million from the state government as compensation.
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THE COURT VERDICT
On Tuesday, Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa, the presiding judge, ruled that the treatment of Clement on October 20, 2021, amounted to violations of his right to dignity.
The judge awarded the sum of N5 million to him as compensation.
Reacting to the development, Inibehe Effiong, the applicant’s counsel, asked Babajide Sanwo-Olu, governor of Lagos, to comply with the verdict and pay the compensation.
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Effiong commended the court for upholding the rights of his client.
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