Man demands N500m damages from Police IG over false ‘wanted’ declaration

A businessman, Musa Mubarak Saliu has sued the Inspector General of Police at the Federal High Court in Abuja over his false declaration as a wanted person in a land dispute.

The suit filed by his lawyers, Femi Motojesi Esq also joins the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Force Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department and Funmilola Florence Olorunfemi as defendants.

The action is a fundamental rights enforcement suit brought under sections 34, 35, 41 and 46; articles 5 and 6 of the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights Cap 10 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

Saliu, who is also a politician and former New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) governorship candidate in Kogi State in 2023, is demanding the sum of N500 million in damages for the violation of his constitutionally guaranteed rights to privacy and dignity of the human person, personal liberty, and freedom of movement when the police declared him wanted.

Saliu wants the court to order the police to unfreeze the account number 1000129689 with Globus Bank belonging to Emperor City Integrated Limited where he is the alter ego and signatory for being a violation of his fundamental rights.

Related News

He is also asking the court to declare that the police publication of his picture and name in the Special Police Gazette bulletin as a wanted person with Ref No: CB: 3510/LX/FHQ/SEB/ABJ/T.7/Vo. 1/20 amounted to the violation of his fundamental rights as they lacked such powers “to engage in the act of debt recovery for the 3rd defendant (Olorunfemi) who is a subscriber to the applicant’s (Saliu’s) estate under construction.”

Saliu, in the suit marked CV/2839/24, is further asking the court to order the police to issue an apology published in the Special Police Gazette bulletin and two national dailies.

According to the estate developer, the dispute arose after Olorunfemi paid N25 million to subscribe to one of his houses being built but work halted after the FCT Department of Development Control demolished the estate.

He said Olorunfemi invited the police to recover her money even after he had notified all the subscribers to the estate that he was making efforts to resolve the issue and return to site.

He is contending that the relationship between him and the Olorunfemi is civil in nature, has no criminal connotation to warrant the police delving into it, inviting him for questioning, blocking his account and publishing his picture and details as a wanted person in the Police Gazette bulletin.

No date has been assigned for the hearing.

Ruth Tene Natsa

Ruth Tene, Assistant Editor, Agric/Solid Minerals/INEC Ruth Tene is an award-winning journalist with over 15 years experience in developmental reporting across several newsrooms, as a reporter, editor and other managerial roles. She holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Journalism from the University of Maiduguri among several other certifications She has attended several trainings and certifications both locally and internationally and has been recognized for her impactful work in humanitarian reporting, receiving the Gold Award for Humanitarian Services from the Amazing Grace Foundation. She is also a recipient of the Home Alliance Fellowship, reflecting her commitment to fostering a more humane, safer and more sustainable planet. An active member of professional journalism bodies, Ruth is affiliated with the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), the National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), and the Agricultural Correspondents Association of Nigeria (ACAN), where she continues to advocate for excellence, ethical reporting, and development-focused journalism.