He stated this on Thursday during an interview on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily, three days after the panel said nine #EndSARS protesters were killed at the Lekki tollgate on October 20, 2020.

After a leaked version of the report indicting the operatives of the Nigerian Army and Police, was circulated on social media, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu set up a committee to review the panel’s report, which is yet to be released officially.

“The panel gave everybody fair hearing, bent over backward to accommodate those who should have been sent packing, did a thorough analysis of the evidence and arrived at recommendations that tallied with the findings.

“It was a thorough-going exercise, one of the best reports ever produced by a judicial commission of inquiry in Nigeria,” Falana said.

The senior lawyer however faulted the leakage of the report of the Judicial Panel of Inquiry on Restitution for Victims of SARS Related Abuses and Other Matters.

He said the state government should only release the report after its four-member set up to raise a White Paper on the reports submitted by the Judicial Panel of Inquiry has completed its assignment.

Falana added, “A judicial commission of inquiry was set up, it has concluded its assignment and submitted the report to the government, including the recommendations. The government will have to study the report and recommendations and issue a white paper which should contain the directives of the government on each of the findings.

“So the government could not have released the report and the government should not have released the report because it has to. A committee has been set up now and that committee should have been allowed  to carry out its assignment.

“It is after that committee has concluded its own assignment that the government will then release the report via a white paper.”

ChannelsTV

In a statement, the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) recounted the alleged underhand tactics employed by the state actors, to stop the couple from regaining freedom, despite their eventual discharge and acquittal from the culpable homicide charge, brought against them by the state government.

Falana said, “It has been reported in the media that the Kaduna State government filed a new charge of terrorism and treasonable felony against Mallam Ibrahim Elzakzaky and his wife, Zeenat El-zakzaky after the dismissal of the eight-count charge of conspiracy and abetment of culpable homicide by the Kaduna State High Court.

“But contrary to such reports the new charge was hurriedly filed in the Federal High Court Kaduna on Tuesday, July 26, in a desperate bid by the Kaduna State government to frustrate the release of the defendants from further incarceration. In other words, the new charge was maliciously filed when the Kaduna State government anticipated that the ruling fixed for July 28 in respect of our no case submission would succeed.

“As soon as the new charge was filed the bailiff of the Federal High Court was commanded to rush to the Kaduna Correctional Centre to serve same on the defendants. But the defendants refused to accept service of the charge and directed the bailiff to serve it on them through their counsel.

“But for reasons best known to the Kaduna State government the charge was not served on the defence counsel. However, on July 28 the trial judge, the Honourable Justice Gideon Kurada refused to be intimidated by the forces of oppression as he displayed exceptional courage and judicial independence.

“His Lordship dismissed the 8-count charge on the ground that it was filed under a law enacted in 2017 by the Kaduna State government for offences that were alleged to have been committed in 2015.

“In apparent disregard of the epochal judgment of the Honourable Justice Gideon Kurada the Kaduna State government seeks to subject the defendants to trial under the Terrorism Prevention Act enacted in 2011 for offences that were committed as far back as 2008. But since the Kaduna State Government is not sure that the defendants would be convicted for terrorism the Director of Public Prosecution, Mr Bayero has announced that an appeal would be filed at the Court of Appeal against the ruling of Justice Kadura.

“No doubt, the new charge constitutes the worst abuse of the process of the Federal High Court. Once the case charge is served on the defence we shall not hesitate to file the necessary application for the immediate termination of the prosecutorial charade.

“In view of the foregoing, we wish to state, without any fear of contradiction, that the filing of the new charge of terrorism and treasonable felony by the Kaduna State government has no effect whatsoever on the valid and subsisting order of the Honourable Justice Gideon Kudura for the unconditional release of the defendants from prison custody.

“In the same vein, the filing of the proposed notice of appeal by the Kaduna State government will not constitute a stay of action with respect to the order for the release of the defendants. Therefore, as law-abiding citizens the defendants are free to continue to breathe the air of freedom.

“However, since the new charge has failed to achieve its oppressive objective of frustrating the release of the couple from further incarceration we call on the Kaduna State Government to discontinue it without any delay.”

Source: Nigerian Tribune