By Cletus Ukpong

A Nigerian court has voided the arrest of commercial sex workers in Abuja by law enforcement officials.

The Abuja Federal High Court presided over by Justice Binta Nyako on Wednesday declared that officials of a security task force acted outside the law when they broke into apartments in Abuja suburbs around 11 p.m, February 2017, to arrest women accused of being prostitutes.

The task force comprised of officials of Abuja Environmental Protection Board, Nigeria Police, and Nigerian Army.

The court judgment followed a fundamental human rights enforcement suit filed by a non-governmental organisation, Lawyers Alert, on behalf of the arrested women.

One Constance Nkwocha and 15 others were the applicants in the suit, while the Nigeria police, the army, Ministry of Federal Capital Territory, and the Abuja Environmental Protection Board were among the respondents.

"I find and hold that the breaking in and arrest of the applicants by the respondents is an infringement of the applicants' right to privacy as guaranteed by the Constitution," the court declared.

"The law has laid down process and procedure for effective arrest, law enforcement agents and agencies should ensure at all times to follow the laid down guidelines by the law."

The court ordered the respondents to pay N100,000 compensation to each of the applicants.

The officials of the task force indecently searched the women and disposed them of their money when they raided their apartments, Lawyers Alert said.

The NGO said the women were tortured and detained while waiting for a mobile court judge "who will try them for a criminal offence they did not know about".

"It is worth recalling that this is not the first time the Joint Task Force had come to arrest, detain and release them. It has always been the practice.

"The women were informed that their arrest owed to their commercial sex work. The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory had a few days before the particular raid promised to rid the Nigeria capital city of sex workers," the organisation said on its website.

It said 52 women were arrested in this particular raid.

Source: https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/more-news/369034-nigerian-court-rules-against-arrest-of-sex-workers.html

I think the court was right to an extent.

Why arrest the sex workers? If they were no people who patronise sex workers, I believe that there won't be any sex worker.

Very good , Buharis approach to everything is very poor

The court ordered the respondents to pay N100,000 compensation to each of the applicants.

Too small. Something around N10m each would have been more appropriate. AEPB is a very lawless organization that operates like a garage union. In fact, they are not different from agberos. A more punitive judgement is needed to deter them from further harassing and violating people’s right.

seunmsg:


Too small. Something around N10m each would have been more appropriate. AEPB is a very lawless organization that operates like a garage union. In fact, they are not different from agberos. A more punitive judgement is needed to deter them from further harassing and violating people’s right.

Too Lawless , I just hope they heed to this court order

The judgenent is good. The government cant violate your rights accusing you of random crimes. They can just as easily break into your house and accuse all the people of being yahoo boys.

They should conduct sting operations to weed out crime. Next it's not hard to catch prostitutes in Abuja of all places. Just get on tinder half the females are blantly advertising.

"I find and hold that the breaking in and arrest of the applicants by the respondents is an infringement of the applicants' right to privacy as guaranteed by the Constitution," the court declared.

"The law has laid down process and procedure for effective arrest, law enforcement agents and agencies should ensure at all times to follow the laid down guidelines by the law."

The court ordered the respondents to pay N100,000 compensation to each of the applicants.

This compensation should be deducted from the salaries of the police officers that went for the operation, arresting the prostitutes.

They fuckèd the ladies during the operation, thinking they’d seen free puzzy, not knowing they are going to pay later for it. They even went as far as using water sachet as condom.

I hope the Police officer will pay?

100k tax payer's money to pay prostitute after the officers don enjoy?

Ok arrest,detain,Bleep and release and do same routine anyway der is no were it's written prostitution is a crime but using children is a crime

thundafire:
Ok arrest,detain,Bleep and release and do same routine anyway der is no were it's written prostitution is a crime but using children is a crime

If prostitution isnt a crime what are they charging them with?

Police and illegal work, and they patronize SEX workers the most.