APC Office Invasion: SSS Fails To Produce Detainees In Court

APC Office Invasion: SSS Fails To Produce Detainees In Court

The State Security Services (SSS) yesterday failed to produce in court five employees of the data office of the All Progressives Congress (APC) arrested by the security agency on December 22, 2014, as ordered by Justice Mohammed Yunusa of the Federal High Court in Lagos.

Justice Yunusa had on Wednesday ordered the SSS to produce the five employees, who were arrested by operatives of the service and the police during a raid on the data office on Saturday, in court on friday.

The security agency was also mandated by the court to come and explain why the employees are still being held in custody beyond the constitutional allowed period.

Those in detention include: Chinedu Atuche, Fayemi Olaposi,  Augustine Onuchukwu, Ebun Ilori, and Esther Enemy.

But when the case was called for hearing yesterday, the counsel, who represented the SSS in court, Peter Okerinmodun, told the court that the agency is not aware of the court's order.

The lawyers claim is, however, contrary to the proof of service in the court file, which showed that his employer has been served with a copy of the court's order at their Abuja office .

When the judge asked him why he was in court since he had not been served, Okerinmodun said that, "My appearance today is based on what I read in newspapers.

"I made contact with (SSS) headquarters to ascertain the authenticity of the reports and they told me there was no service on them. Even as at this morning, nobody has confirmed Service, so I only come to court out of respect as I have not been briefed," he said

However, counsel to the APC, Prof. Yemi Osibajo (SAN), informed the court that both the police and the SSS were duly served, only that the latter refused to accept service at their Lagos office.

"The first respondent (the Nigerian police) were served here (Lagos) and in Abuja. We also served the second respondent (SSS), in pursuant to the orders of this court in Abuja and they accepted service.

"The proof of service is in the court's file and the SSS ought to have obedyed the orders of my lord, to produce the five applicants," Osibajo submitted.

While asking for a short adjourment, Okerinmodun said "We are never known for disobeying my lord's orders, so I need time to sort out the confusion by getting across to Abuja to find out if they have accepted service".

To this, Osibajo expressed reservations at the SSS counsel's claims, noting that the judge's orders were unambiguous.

"We are just worried that these individuals have been in detention since Saturday," he said.

In a short ruling Justice Yunusa said he believed Okerinmodun because he "had been a good lawyer in my court" and based on that he would adjourned till December 1 to enable the respondent to comply with the orders.

It will be recalled that the judge had also restraining the SSS from further sealing off the data office of the  APC or taking further steps in connection with the property.

The judge made the interim orders while ruling on a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by the APC.

According to the party a combined team of the State Security Service operatives and naval police officers raided the data centre of the All APC in Ikeja, Lagos, in the early hours of Saturday.

The operatives ransacked the centre and carted away the servers, routers, hard drives from personal computers and the work stations.
The 24 staff on the night shift and another one from her residence were arrested.

But the Department of State Security (DSS) denied the allegation, stating instead that it raided the premises following a petition it received about some activities of the company.

A text message by the spokesperson of the DSS, Ms. Marilyn Ogar on Sunday, said the petition alleged that the Independent National Electoral Commission’s permanent voter’s cards were being cloned at the outfit.

According to Ogar, the petition alleged that the “cloning” of the cards was with the intention of hacking into INEC’s data base, corrupting it and replacing them with the “cloned” data.