Rights lawyer Sonnie Ekwowusi has called on the Inspector General of Police to rein in his officers following an alleged threat by officers of the Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID) Panti, Yaba, Lagos to arrest him on account of suing the police for meddling in a monetary dispute between his clients and their patient.
Ekwowusi in a statement made available to Law & Society said:
Nigeria Police cannot adjudicate on non-payment of debt and relationship between medical doctors and their clients
Nigeria Police has no statutory power or constitutional right to adjudicate in a civil dispute arising from debt owed a medical doctor by his patient.
An officer at the SCIID Panti, Yaba, Lagos has just called me and is threatening to arrest me and the Medical doctors who have sued Panti Police and others at the Federal High Court in suit No. FHC/L/C8/05/2025: Dr. BRIGHT IGBINOVA & ORS V OKECHUKWU NWAONUMA, STATE CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION AND INTELLIGENCE DEPARTMENT, PANTI, YABA, LAGOS, COMMISSIONER OF POLICE LAGOS STATE, INSPECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE & ORS for delving into a civil dispute- debt collection and relationship between a medical doctor and his patient
DOCTRINE OF LIS PENDIS
I have told the officer that our clients have approached the court and that by virtue of Section 6(6) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Nigeria Police has no statutory or constitutional right to usurp the function of the court and adjudicate on civil disputes between the citizens.
I further told the officer that I am in chambers and that he should come there and arrest me and that our clients who are medical doctors were also attending to their parents in their respective hospitals. He should go there and arrest them too.
DEMAND
We must put a stop to the blatant illegality that has taken Nigeria’s administration of our criminal justice system hostage
I am calling on the Inspector General of Police, Mr Kayode Egbetokun to call his men to order because Nigeria is a country ruled by Law.
Background
Two medical doctors- Dr. Bright Igbinoba and Dr. Frank Obijiofor- administered successful surgery on their patient. The patient initially paid some deposits and later defaulted in payment.
Upon demand by the medical doctors for payment, the patient rushed to the) State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department) SCIID, Panti, Yaba, Lagos and lodged a petition. Panti summoned the doctors and sat in judgment on the non-payment of the debt and even detained the doctors and extorted money from them for them to regain their freedom
Thereafter, the doctors sued Panti. In reaction, Panti is now threatening to arrest the doctors and their lawyer.
