Falana Seeks Compensation As Tinubu Directs Release Of Detained Minors
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana has indicated an intention to request compensation for minors detained over the #EndBadGovernance protest.
Falana, who is the counsel to the suspected protesters spoke shortly after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu yesterday directed the release of the minors.
The minors are among the 76 defendants charged with treasonable felony before a Federal High Court in Abuja, over the protests which lasted from August 1 to 10. At the hearing on Friday, they were granted N10 million bail bond each and remanded pending the fulfilment of the terms.
Outrage had trailed the treatment of the minors and the condition in which they were brought to court, with many calling for the immediate release of the suspects.
Tinubu’s directives
Addressing State House correspondents yesterday, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said the president’s release order was without prejudice to whatever legal process that was ongoing.
The minister, who was flanked by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga and the Special Adviser to the President on Public Communications and National Orientation, Sunday Dare, said a committee has been set up to investigate the circumstances surrounding the issue.
Idris said any government officer found wanting in the cause of the investigation would be made to face the law.
He said: “I had a short briefing with Mr. President early this evening (Monday) and he has directed the immediate release of all the minors that have been arrested by the police.
“The president has also directed the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction to immediately see to the welfare of those minors, and also take part to ensure their smooth reunion with their parents or guardians, wherever they are in the country”, the minister said.
He further said: “The president has directed that a committee will be set up immediately to be headed by the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, an Administrative Committee to look at all the issues surrounding the arrest, detention, the treatment, and finally, the release of these minors.
“The president has also directed that all the law enforcement agents involved in the arrest and the legal processes will be investigated, and if there are any infractions, found to have been committed by any official of the government, be he a law enforcement agent, or whoever that person may be, appropriate disciplinary action will be taken”, he said.
In his remarks, Sunday Dare added that the case file is already with the Attorney-General of the Federation.
He said: “The president’s directive covers all the detained minors including an additional three arraigned alongside 16 adults over the #EndBadGovernance protest in Borno State”.
Reacting, the lawyer to the suspected protesters, Femi Falana said: “We will wait until the matter is withdrawn tomorrow, we will then ask the defendants what they want to be done before we can make the application.
“We hope they will withdraw the matter tomorrow (Tuesday)”, he said.
Falana had filed a notice of preliminary objection asking the judge to decline jurisdiction in the case and for an order mandating the complainant to pay the children’s school fees till at least senior secondary school or university level.
Falana said the application is in line with “Section 18 (3) (a) (b) (c) of the 1999 Constitution, Section 15 of the Child’s Rights Act, Section 2 of the Universal Basic Education Act, and Article 17 of the African Charter.”
Falana argued that the Federal High Court “lacks the jurisdiction to try them by Section 251 of the 1999 Constitution,” stressing that, under “Section 204 of the Child’s Rights Act, they can only be subjected to the child justice system.”
