Lagos High Court Extends Protests Restrictions, Limit Demonstrations To Two Parks

A Lagos High Court has extended its previous order restricting protesters of the #endbadgovernance in the state to the Gani Fawehinmi Freedom Park in Ojota and the Peace Park in Ketu.

The extension order was deemed necessary after the state adhered to the pre-action protocols for preemptive remedies mandated last week by vacation judge, Justice Emmanuel Ogundare.

Justice Sherifat Sonaike, who has taken over as vacation judge, issued the order on Tuesday following an application submitted by the Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Lawal Pedro.

The order will remain in effect until August 29, when the case is scheduled to be revisited by the court.

During today’s proceedings, the state attorney general was represented by the Director of Civil litigation, Mr. Hameed Oyenuga, who informed Justice Sonaike that the earlier court order had been duly served to all respondents in compliance with the pre-action protocols.

The respondents in the suit are Adamma Ukpabi and Tosin Harsogba (for Active Citizens Group); Comrade Juwon Sanyaolu and Hassan Soweto (for Take It Back Movement); persons unknown; and Commissioner of Police, Lagos State.

In his submissions before the court, Oyenuga also said that though the respondents in the suit were yet to respond to the application, there was a need to extend the earlier restriction order of the protest to the two venues, so that the state could continue to enjoy the relative peace being experienced despite the ongoing protests across the country.

In her ruling, Justice Sonaike noted that she is satisfied with the AG’s compliance with the orders of Justice Ogundare, and ordered that the restriction of the protests to Freedom and Peace Parks in the Ojota and Ketu areas of the state, be extended until full compliance with the preaction protocols.

On July 30th, Justice Ogundare while ruling on the exparte application filed by Pedro, had granted the order of preemptive remedy by way of an interim injunction, to restrict the defendants from converging and carrying out the proposed protests in Lagos from August 1 1-10th, except in the two approved locations from 8 am to 6 pm.

While moving his application before the court, the Attorney General, argued that as the Chief Law Officer of the State and having been privy to notices by different interests who are for and against the nationwide protest, there is a need to protect the critical infrastructures of the state and prevent an irreparable loss of lives and property as witnessed during the EndSARS protest in 2020.

Pedro also maintained that the Police in the State did not have sufficient manpower to provide security support for the protesters who planned to protest in all the local government councils public highways and other areas of public access in the State.

He further argued that there is a need to prevent the protest from being hijacked by hoodlums who are prepared to breach law and order and cause destruction in different locations in the State under the pretext of public protest against alleged bad governance.