3 weeks ago
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Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu
The Lagos State Government has denied media reports claiming that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has sued the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission over an alleged plan to arrest and prosecute him after his tenure.
PUNCH Online reports that the state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro, SAN, clarified this in a statement on Tuesday.
Earlier reports suggested that Sanwo-Olu had allegedly filed a lawsuit against the EFCC, citing threats of arrest, detention, and prosecution once his tenure as governor ends.
The suit filed as a fundamental rights enforcement action, was reportedly presented before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja by Sanwo-Olu’s alleged lawyer, Darlington Ozurumba.
During a court session on Tuesday, Ozurumba informed the court of the withdrawal of an initial originating summons, stating it had been replaced with a revised filing.
He said that the EFCC had been served with the new court documents.
However, EFCC counsel Hadiza Afegbua indicated she had not yet received them, and the proof of service was not in the court file.
Justice Abdulmalik adjourned the case until 11 November for further mention.
However, according to Pedro, Sanwo-Olu neither sued nor authorised any legal practitioner to file a suit on his behalf concerning the matter. The commissioner confirmed that the state government is investigating the existence of the case, which surfaced without its knowledge.
Pedro further stated that the EFCC is not investigating the governor and has never invited him or threatened to arrest any of his staff, domestic or otherwise.
The statement reads, “Our attention has been drawn to the news circulating in a section of the media, titled: ‘Sanwo-Olu Sues EFCC over alleged plan to arrest, prosecute him after tenure.’
“We wish to clarify that Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, at no time, sued or briefed any legal practitioner to file a suit on his behalf concerning the above subject matter.
“Moreover, it is implausible for the Governor, who enjoys immunity as conferred by the Constitution and has almost three years remaining in office, to engage any lawyer on this matter.
“To the best of my knowledge, my inquiry confirmed that the EFCC is not investigating the governor and has never invited him or threatened the arrest of any member of his staff, domestic or otherwise. We are currently investigating how the case came to be without our knowledge.”
Pedro added that the governor remains focused on improving the living conditions of all Lagosians and has nothing to fear upon leaving office.
“For the avoidance of doubt, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu has demonstrated exemplary service delivery and prudent, judicious management of public resources.
“Therefore, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who is tirelessly working to improve the living conditions of all Lagosians, has no cause for concern when he eventually leaves office at the end of his tenure in May 2027.
“We, therefore, urge media organisations to be cautious about the reports they publish on their esteemed platforms to avoid misleading the public,” the statement concluded.
