By Albert UBA, Investigator-in-Chief.
STRONG indications have emerged that the Lagos State Police Command under the watch of Commissioner of Police CP Imohimi Edgar may be on collision course with the Ikeja branch of the Nigeria Bar Association NBA and other interest groups resident in the state over the latter’s insistence to go on with their planned protest against the outrageous Land Use Charge recently enacted by Governor Akinwunmi Ambode. The protest is to hold Thursday 29, 2018, a day President Muhammadu Buhari would be visiting the state on a two day working visit since assumption of office in May 2015. Whereas, the body of lawyers under Mr. Adesina Ogunlana who reports say would be joined by some interest groups are breathing fire and brimstone, vowing not be cowed by anybody; not even the Police to carry on with the planned protest, the Police through its spokesperson, SP Chike Oti on the other hand, has warned that anyone who stages a protest in Lagos while the visit of Mr. President lasted, would be seen as renegade and would be treated as such. The Command’s position is predicated on the fact that the body of lawyers had earlier in the wake of the LUC saga, staged a peaceful protest to the Lagos State House of Assembly on the notice and assistance of the Police adding that the Governor backpedaled on his earlier stance over the issue; wondering however, the reason another of such protest on a crucial day of the visit of Mr. President. It is therefore, the assumption of the Police that some unseen hands were fanning the amber of violence using NBA and other groups that would want to join in the planned protest as willing lackeys. As it stands, the stage is set and the audience is watching with keen interest the one that would blinks first between the Police and NBA. A statement signed by SP Oti and obtained by CrimeWorld reads in part: “It is baffling that the same NBA which right to protest has never been denied to use the same auspicious occasion of the President’s visit to protest and disrupt the occasion and by extension, compromise the security of the President is to say the least incomprehensible. For the avoidance o f doubt, the Lagos state Police Command will not tolerate any protest form the NBA and any group or individual for that matter during the visit of Mr. President whom Lagosians are ready to receive warmly. The NBA and any group wanting t to protest at this time are warned to jettison the idea or face dire consequences which may include arrest and prosecution of participants. It is curious that of all the NBA branches in Lagos, it is only the Ikeja branch that had been using option of protest and civil disobedience despite several options available to its thus, lending credence to intelligence report that the Chairman of the NBA is a pawn in the hands of some disgruntled politicians. Please be warned.”
But Mr. Ogunlana who is visibly bent on carrying on with the planned protest said his association does not need to approval of the Police to stage a peaceful protest noting however, that it was neither meant to breach the security of the visiting President nor embarrass the state government saying, “ The planned protest must hold. I don’t need the Police to stage a peaceful protest on a matter that I see that is inimical to the well-being of the generality of Nigerian resident in Lagos State. You are talking to a lawyer, I am not afraid of Police arrest; let them come and arrest me. As I speak with you, we are at the secretariat planning. We will not protest in places termed security cordon, no. But the protest must hold to register our disenchantment over the Land Use Charge.”
…Adesina gone into hiding over Police invasion of NBA Secretariat to stop the planned protest against Land Use Charge?