An Uyo High Court presided over by Justice Andrew Okon of Court 5, is set to deliver judgement in the N100m suit filed by the Dean Faculty of Law University of Uyo, Professor Nsogurua Udombana, against the Commissioner of police, Akwa Ibom state command and one Corporal Martins, a Mobile police officer, for acts of brutality, illegal detention, assault, and infringement of his fundamental human rights. Professor Udombana is asking the court to order the police to pay him N100 million as damages for unjustifiable torture inflicted on him by the second respondent, Corporal Martins.
In a 19-paragraph affidavit in support of his application for the enforcement of his fundamental human rights, the professor of law averred that he was brutally attacked by a Mobile police officer on duty at CCC junction Uyo in the evening of February 19, 2011. He stated that the officer had flagged him down at the police checkpoint at the junction and while still trying to park properly, the officer had pointed his riffle menacingly at him, prompting him to politely ask the police officer not to point his weapon at him as he was not a criminal.
Udombana, further pointed out that he was at this point dragged from his car and slapped several times by the police officer. He stated that his introduction of himself as a lawyer and a University lecturer did not help matters as the officer continued beating him and hurling abuses at him.
“The second respondent ordered me to sit on the ground but I refused and this infuriated him the more. He continued to torture me as he liked and I was detained for over two hours at the checkpoint. All pleadings by persons who knew me and concerned members of the public who saw my plight fell on deaf ears of the second respondent”, Prof Udombana said. He added that “second respondent threatened to kill me, according to him, he ‘can waste me’ and nothing would happen. That was when I became afraid and managed to call several persons to come to my rescue, since it was getting dark and anything could have happened to me as the second respondent was dead serious”
The Dean law faculty, went to narrate how he had to call the Vice Chancellor of the University of Uyo, Prof Comfort Ekpo, the ASUU Uniuyo chapter chairman, Dr Ashong Ashong, as well as the Chief Security Officer of Uniuyo, Col. Nyong. It was through the entreaty of the VC to the state government that a senior police officer was sent to rescue him from his jailer.
“I have never been so badly tortured, slapped, beaten, assaulted, detained, humiliated, embarrassed and deprived of my fundamental rights in this country, in that manner before, not even under the military era that such treatment was rampant.
“That this unwarranted and unjustifiable torture, beating and slapping was done in the full glare of the public and in the presence of several students of the University, who were either returning or going back to school”.
The former University of Lagos lecturer, is praying the court to “Restrain the respondents, its officers, agents, servants from further arresting, detaining, harassing and intimidating the applicant or in any manner breaching his fundamental rights except in accordance with procedure permitted by law”. He is also asking for, “N100, 000, 000 only as damages against the respondents for the unjustifiable torture and the breach” of his fundamental rights.
The parties have so far adopted their oral and written addresses and the court has fixed judgement on the matter to January 16, 2012.
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