Magodo: Afenifere Demands Apology

By Uche Mbah

The pan-Yoruba socio cultural group, Afenifere, has asked the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) to apologise to the Yoruba Nation for humiliating the Governor of Lagos state, Babajide Sanwo-Olu. Afenifere said both prevented the Governor from intervening in a crisis that threatened the peace of his subjects.

This was contained in a statement signed by the National Publicity Secretary of the group, Jare Ajayi.

Recently, confusion and chaos had followed a Supreme Court judgement handing over Magodo to the original Land owners.

The place was taken over by a former Military regime. The indigenes suspected foul play and went to Court.

A contingent of Policemen were dispatched from Abuja to, allegedly, effect eviction, and an exchange between Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who hurried to the Estate, and an officer of the Nigerian Police Force, a DSP, ensued on Tuesday, January 4, 2022.

Irked by the exchange between the Governor and the CSP, “Afenifere is demanding unreserved apologies from the IGP and AGF for this despicable affront.

Not only that, we are, also, demanding the immediate take-off of State Police by any State that is ready to establish such. Nigeria should no longer be run as a country under a Unitary System of Government ”, the statement said.

Ajayi said the confession by the Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP),  the leader of the police team to Magodo, has shown that Nigeria is not practising a Federal System of Government.

“The country is officially called Federal Republic of Nigeria, while the extant Constitution dubs each of the State Governors as the Chief Security Officer of their respective states. Yet, when Governor Sanwo-Olu wanted to take a step he considered necessary for the issue at hand, an obstacle was put on his way.”

While the Inspector General of Police has ordered his men out of Magodo, the Attorney General said he “took exception” to the reaction of South-west Governors to the incident.

“We condemn, in very clear terms, the role of the attorney-general of the federation, Mr Abubakar Malami, SAN, in this act of gross moral turpitude,” the South west governors forum said in a statement signed by Rotimi Akeredolu, its Chairman.

But Malami, in a statement signed by his Media Aide, Dr Umar Gwandu, said the position of the Governors was a vituperation of ulterior motives of some political class.

“We see it as a vituperation of ulterior motives of some political class, who derived pleasure in dragging the name of Malami in the mud to achieve some sinister objectives,” the statement read.

“The Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice takes exception to the Southwest Governors unjustifiable insinuation of impunity against the Office of the Attorney General over the execution of a judgment of the Supreme Court.

“The role of the executive is, in this respect, simply to aide the maintenance of law and order in due compliance with rule of law arising from giving effect to the judgment of the apex court of the land.

Claiming that the Supreme Court judgement concerning the land tussle was delivered before he was appointed, he defended the officers at the estate.

“The judgment was a reaffirmation of the judgments of the Court of Appeal and High Court delivered on 31st December 1993,” he said.

“It is widely reported in the papers that the Lagos State Governor was quoted to have said, “I’ve spoken extensively with the Inspector-General of Police and the Honourable Attorney-General, and we’ve resolved all the issues”, he said.

“Some of the cardinal pillars of democratic Government are the doctrine of separation of powers and obedience to the rule of law inclusive of Court Orders.

“It is a common knowledge that execution of the judgment and orders of Courts of competent jurisdiction, and the Court of last resort in the circumstances remains a cardinal component of the rule of law and the office of the Attorney General wonders how maintenance of the law and orders in the course of execution of the judgment of the supreme can be adjudged by the imagination of the Governors, to be unruly.”

On Wednesday, at a meeting, Governor Sanwo-Olu and all the parties, at a meeting, resolved all the issues amicably.