Under-fire Commissioner of Police in-charge of Force Intelligence Bureau (FIB) Annex, Lagos, Mr. Salisu Gyadi Gyadi has apologized to senior lawyer, Mr. Ayodeji Odukale for his detention alongside his client.

CITY LAWYER had yesterday reported that Odukale was detained on the orders of Gyadi for allegedly coming late to a scheduled meeting to resolve a charge of “threat to life” arising from a matrimonial dispute.

Following the CITY LAWYER report, the Chief Joe-Kyari Gadzama SAN-led Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Security Agencies Relations Committee (NBA-SARC) has waded into the matter.

Odukale told CITY LAWYER that Gadzama had telephoned him and asked him to write formally to the committee stating his grievances and demands, adding that the NBA-SARC also dispatched respected former Deputy Inspector General of Police Taiwo Lakanu to investigate the matter.

The senior lawyer, who was admitted to the Bar 31 years ago, stated that following Lakanu’s intervention, Gyadi had called him severally to apologize for the debacle, saying that he was “surprised and worried when I heard about your detention by my officers.”

The police chief stated that he came to grip with the full picture of the matter during a “marathon party interview,” adding that “our main aim is to see that the parties settled.” He expressed a desire to meet with the senior lawyer “one on one” to “dialogue” with him and personally apologize over the debacle.

Odukale thanked CITY LAWYER for putting a spotlight on his plight, saying that many lawyers and non-lawyers had called to sympathize with him. “I am happy that as a result of the report, NBA finally rose to the occasion,” said Odukale.

He stated that while he had acknowledged Gyadi’s remorseful posture, he was in the process of writing formally to NBA “to ensure that the apology is formalized and secure assurances that no lawyer or citizen for that matter will suffer the same fate that befell me and my client.”

Odukale had told CITY LAWYER that his ordeal started when he accompanied his client to a meeting with Gyadi, adding that immediately the duo entered the meeting room, Gyadi said he would “personally sign” their detention order for coming late to the meeting.

In a post he made on a lawyers’ platform, the senior lawyer said: “Good evening colleagues, I want to bring an unfortunate incident to our attention especially as there is a meeting tomorrow (today). I went for a meeting with a victim of domestic violence to meet with the commissioner of Police Force Intelligence Bureau, Kam Salem building, Obalende on Wednesday. The commissioner said we came late for the meeting and ordered that we be detained at Alagbon. Because you normally drop your phone before entering, l left my phone in the car. As a result, I could not communicate with the outside world. Somehow, I managed to get information across to my wife who tweeted NBA Lagos and NBA National. Unfortunately, to the best of my knowledge, till today there has been no response from the NBA. It seems the NBA cares little about members in distress and this arbitrary use of power. What if we had a medical situation warranting administration of medicine every hour? So NBA would now rush and come and pay condolence visit?”

He said that the matter revolved around a domestic violence complaint incidented by his client at the Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team (DSVRT), adding that the team referred the matter to the Adeniji Adele Police Station. He stated that a police team from the station visited the suspect, and that the suspect turned around to levy a charge that he and his client brought “thugs” to threaten him. Odukale added that “threat to life” is not an offence known to Nigeria’s jurisprudence.

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