Legal counsel to human rights activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has faulted the Lagos State Police Command for declaring his client wanted, describing the action as unconstitutional.
Speaking on The Morning Brief on Channels Television on Thursday, Sowore’s lawyer, Tope Temokun, said the police acted outside the law, stressing that “there is no law in Nigeria that empowers the police to declare anybody wanted.”
Temokun explained that only a court of competent jurisdiction can authorize such a declaration after due legal process.
“When you are looking for somebody and cannot find him after a criminal complaint or investigation, and the person is evading arrest, that is when you can seek the order of the court,” he said. “Publishing an individual as wanted without a court order is not only defamatory but also unconstitutional.”
He maintained that the declaration of Sowore as wanted was “arbitrary” and reflected “total ignorance of the law by those enforcing it.”
Temokun emphasized that every Nigerian citizen has the constitutional right to freedom of movement and personal liberty, adding that such rights can only be limited by lawful court orders, not by arbitrary police pronouncements.
The lawyer also confirmed that the Federal High Court in Lagos had granted an order restraining the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Olohundare Jimoh, and other security agencies from arresting or intimidating Sowore.
The police had earlier declared the African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate wanted for allegedly planning to disrupt public peace by leading a protest on the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos.
Commissioner of Police Jimoh claimed the planned protest was intended to “cause hardship for Lagos residents and visitors” and could lead to serious disturbances.
However, the court’s restraining order bars the police and other security agencies from carrying out the declaration or any related action against Sowore pending the determination of the suit.
