ENDSARS: Lagos panel reprimands ENDSARS lawyer

A lawyer to one of the Endsars petitioner in Lagos has been reprimanded for his unprofessional in a petition involving for leader of Lagos SARS Abba Kyari now a deputy police commissioner.

Kyari was named in a petition by Afeez Mojeed whose lawyer Kabiru Adegbolu had been publicizing the petition—yet to be heard before the Justice Doris panel—in the media and on social media.

Mojeed accused Kyari of leading his squad in torturing and forcing him to transfer about N42 million from his account to police collaborators, one of whom he named Nurudeen Alabi.

But Kyari’s lawyer, Nosa Uhumwangho, on Saturday said his client was not asked to appear but they chose to do so because Adegbolu had been conducting a “media trial” and casting aspersions on Kyari.

“Counsel for the petitioner has been granting interviews in the media, conducting a media trial which is prejudicial. He is preempting the panel and if he does not have confidence in the panel, he should continue with media trial. He has said a lot about my boss on social media, and on the TV,” he said.

“You were even dancing, you were shaking hands as if you were present at the incident of the crime,” he said at the top of his voice.

“He added that if the counsel has no faith in the panel, he should go ahead with his trial in the media, and then we would respond.”

Uhumwangho said the counsel to the petitioner should be made to tender an apology.

He wasn’t the only one accusing Adedigbo of media trial and lack of faith in the panel he petitioned.

Debo Adeleke, the counsel to Obinna, also complained of what they saw on social media.

Adeleke, whose client was not included in the petition before the panel, begged to be joined in the petition in a written letter to the parties involved.

According to him, his client was surprised that he, a victim that Mojeed swindled of N97million, is now being called different names.

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“It is known that once a matter is in court of competent jurisdiction just like this Tribunal, a lawyer or anybody should refrain from making any comment, otherwise it becomes subjudice.

“In alliance with my colleague, if the petitioner has no faith in the panel, he should have gone somewhere else rather than malign the name of our client, a victim that was defrauded 97million, calling him police agent,” he said

In all this, the camera-friendly lawyer Akingbolu did not deny any of the complaints made against him.

But he said the panel is a public restitution, and journalists have their way of getting information, and he cannot restrict them from having access.

“However, if my learned friends are otherwise demeaned by that and the Panel sees it as inappropriate, we are saying before this honourable panel as responsible citizens that we shall abide by the rules of the panel to ensure nothing is done to taint the integrity of the panel or to bring it disrepute of any kind,” he said.

Olukayode Enitan, the counsel for Lagos government, was also constrained to intervene.

“I’m of the humble opinion that my learned friend for the petitioner, having submitted a petition before the panel, ought to have restrained himself from speaking to the press with regards to the subject of the petition, notwithstanding that journalists could procure the petition whichever way.

“My learned colleague, having given a commitment not to engage in such conduct going forward, I will urge the panel to overlook that infraction on the sole ground that hearing had not commenced,” he said.

The panel chairman Dorris Okuwobi, said Adegbolu committed a serious violation of the legal profession.

She then cautioned the lawyer to desist from taking steps that will undermine the panel.