Politics
Keyamo’s stance on #EndSARS panel has no legal basis —Falana
Human rights lawyer and activist, Femi Falana has slammed the Minister of State for Labour, Mr Festus Keyamo, SAN, for faulting the EndSARS Panel set up by the Lagos State Government.
Falana made this assertion on Monday while speaking at a one-day Nigeria Pro-Democracy Conference 2021 with the theme: ‘Rethinking the Moment: Building Citizens Alternative Movement Beyond 2023’.
According to him, the view of Keyamo has no legal basis while restating the legal wherewithal of the Lagos State Government to institute a judicial panel of inquiry on any issue.
Falana said: “Nigeria is governed by law. The Lagos State government sets up a judicial inquiry, it was not an inquiry set up on the directive of the federal government. When you say that, you insult the state, which is a sovereign within the federation.
Read also: Falana accuses Lai Mohammed of ‘executive rascality’
“When someone now says that the panel in Lagos is illegal because it has investigated federal officers, with profound respect, he is not talking law. That is not the law.
“The Lagos panel relied solely on documentary evidence from the officials of the government. In fact, exhibit A, the first document tendered before the panel was produced by the LCC which captured the events of October 20, 2020, but the camera was later disabled.
“Few weeks ago, President Buhari told the US Secretary of State that he is waiting for the reports from the state governors and he will implement them, but our friend said on Sunday on Television that he is speaking on his behalf and not as a minister. You cannot draw a dichotomy between your private views and the views of the government that you are part of.”
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