Judiciary
THE Police on Thursday returned title documents belonging to Mr Gabriel Ofoma, in compliance with the order of the National Human Rights Commission’s panel, sitting in Abuja.
The panel investigating the allegations of human rights violations against the disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) in Abuja, had on Nov. 16, 2020, ordered the police to appear before it with the said title documents.
Ofoma had approached the panel and requested it to order the police to return the Certificate of Occupancy of his land allegedly seized by officers from the monitoring unit of the Nigerian Police, FCT Command.
At the resumed hearing on Thursday, the panel officially handed over the said document to Ofoma after it received same from the police authority.
The chairman of the panel, Justice Suleiman Galadima (rtd) said “there is an end to every litigation, and the matter has been put to an end today”.
He commended the police force for producing the land title document belonging to the complainant.
Suleiman stated that it was important to encourage litigants to embrace amicable and peaceful resolution of their disputes, adding that he hoped the police would keep it up.
“On this note the matter is concluded and closed,” he said.
The complainant said he held no grudges against the police authority, but only pleaded with the panel to help him retrieve the land title documents that had been in its custody.
He noted that the controversy and dispute over the document was over since his prayers before the panel had been answered.
Counsel to the police, Mr James Idachaba, told the panel that his client was merely involved in the matter to assist the panel and complainant.
He noted that his client had been doing that and would continue to do same, since the said documents did not belong to the police authority.
Idachaba further argued that the police had neither contested nor disputed the fact of the matter, saying that the person being prosecuted for theft in respect of the document was dead.
He said Insp Iliya, who was the investigating officer in the case, was before the panel armed with the said document ready to be returned to its owner, the complainant.
NAN
– Dec. 3, 2020 @ 16:07GMT |
Tags: NHRC panel : Police return seized title documents to complainant
