An officer of the Nigeria Immigration Service at the Abuja Passport Office, Yemi Badru has accused the Comptroller of Immigration Service (Discipline & Award), CIS Olasiyan of disobeying the order to release an officer of the service, Umar Mohammed in his favour.
Badru was assaulted on July 30, 2019, by a senior colleague, Umar Mohammed with Service Number NIS/25177 and the legal advice in the case CR NO: 1616/2021 between Commissioner of Police Vs Umar Mohammed, who assaulted him was issued on October 6, 2021, via a letter reference LJP/MISC/2021/185/18, and addressed to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID) Panti, Yaba, Lagos State.
The officer said the Nigeria Police Force (D18 Unit of the SCID Panti) who investigated and granted administrative bail to Mohammed have refused to arrest him for prosecution as advised by the Directorate of Public Prosecution of Lagos State Ministry of Justice, issued by the its Director, Adetutu Oshinusi.
The victim said he visited SCIID Panti, Lagos severally to demand that they enforce Mohammed’s prosecution, but all he was told was that since Mohammed is still a staff of the Nigeria Immigration Service, he has immunity against arrest and that they can’t arrest him if the Service did not release him to them.
Badru, who claimed that he has not been allowed to sit for promotional examination since the case, while Mohammed has been receiving juicy postings and promotion, said he had written several letters to the Comptroller-General of Immigration Service to request for Mohammed’s immediate release for prosecution, but the Comptroller-General and the Nigeria Immigration Service have refused to release him for prosecution.
He said: “I confirmed that the Lagos State Command has written to the Comptroller-General of Immigration Service and requested for the release of Mohammed for prosecution and that the Comptroller-General of Immigration Service has passed it to the Comptroller of Immigration Service (Discipline & Award), CIS Olasiyan, for compliance, but he has refused to release him.
“Despite the clear wording of the Legal Advice, the State Counsel assigned to prosecute the case has neither filed any process at the Magistrate Court against Mohammed nor sent hearing notice to the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).
“Several efforts and visits to the Directorate of Public Prosecution to get justice on the matter have not yielded results even as the state counsel, Adebola Araba and one Barrister Saliu, assigned to prosecute Mohammed have refused to do so, claiming that if the Nigeria Police Force will not arrest the accused person for prosecution, he will not file any charges or processes in court.
“I also wonder why the NPF have refused to revoke the administrative bail granted to Mohammed or enforce same by asking his surety to produce him, seeing that NIS is still shielding Mohammed who has been found culpable by the DPP, and seeing the DPP refusing to file court processes at that NIS is still shielding Mohammed, who has been found culpable by the DPP, and seeing that the DPP is refusing to file court processes at the Magistrate Court.
“ I am seriously afraid and doubt if justice will still be done on my matter. And as a result, I wrote the Attorney-General of Lagos State, the Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Justice, the DPP of Lagos State and the Director of Citizens Right of Lagos to intervene and get justice for me on the matter, although since wrote them Araba Adebola has still refused to file court processes at the Magistrate Court till date.”
But, reacting to the complaint, the legal adviser, Nigeria immigration Service, Malam Adamu said he was aware of the case, but do not aware that the police asked the service to release Umar Mohammed for prosecution.
According to him, he took the case of two officers facing disciplinary action before the management for intervention and they were asked to go and sort themselves out.
He said: “
“I’ve not seen any DPP advice or recommendation or any police report.
“I am just hearing it from you for the first time. I am surprised to know that this case has not been settled.
“Everything, including the report of his promotion, is heresay, but what I can tell you is that Badru has filed two fresh actions after that one and in law, there is a limit to litigation.”
