Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has sued President Bola Tinubu at the Federal High Court, Lagos over the unlawful ban and withdrawal of accreditation to 25 journalists and media houses covering the Presidential Villa.

The affected include: Vanguard newspaper; Galaxy TV; Ben TV; MITV; ITV Abuja; PromptNews, ONTV and Liberty.

Others affected by the withdrawal are mostly reporters and cameramen from broadcast, print and online media outlets.

In the suit numbered FHC/L/CS/1766/23 and filed at the weekend by its lawyers, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN), Kolawole Oluwadare and Valentina Adegoke, the group is seeking an order to direct and compel the President to reverse the decision.

The organisation is also seeking an order of perpetual injunction to restrain Tinubu or any other authority, person or group of persons from arbitrarily and unilaterally revoking the accreditation of any journalist and media house covering the State House.

If not reversed, SERAP argued that the arbitrary ban on the journalists would birth other cases of arbitrariness and restrict people’s right to freedom of expression, access to information, participation and media freedom.

“The withdrawal of accreditations of the journalists is without any lawful justification. It is inconsistent and incompatible with plurality of voices, diversity of voices, non-discrimination, and just demands of a democratic society, as well as the public interest, the group submitted.

It maintained that the embargo failed to meet the requirements of legality, necessity and proportionality.

The Federal Government, the group added, should aspire to promote and expand the scope of media freedom, access to information, freedom of expression and citizens’ participation.

“Barring these journalists and media houses from covering the Presidential Villa is to prevent them from carrying out their legitimate constitutional responsibility,” SERAP stated.

No date has been fixed to entertain the suit.