A Child Right Activist, Wale Ojo-Lanre has dragged the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi before a Lagos State High Court in Ikeja for involving a toddler in his October 1 political rally in Lagos.
Ojo-Lanre, also ex-chairman of the Nigerian Union of Journalists
has slammed a N50 million lawsuit on Labour Party presidential candidate.
Ojo-Lanre had on October 27 filed the originating motion on notice before a family court in the Ikeja Division of the High Court in Lagos.
He is suing the respondents as a “concerned Nigerian and litigation friend” of the toddler.
Other respondents in the suit marked ID/6332GCM/2022 included the Labour Party, Queen (mother of the underage), the federal government, and the attorney general of the federation.
The petitioner is seeking an award of N50 million in damages against the first, second, and third respondents for violating the child’s rights.
Ojo-Lanre argued that it was illegal, misleading, unlawful, exploitative, and abusive for the presidential candidate to post the picture and video of the toddler via his Twitter handle on October 2 and refer to her as “a poster child.”
He said:
“The first defendant allowed participation and usage of a toddler in an adult political rally, which took place on the street of Lagos on October 1. This is contrary to sections 29 and 33 of the Child Rights Act of Lagos State and Article 36 of the United Nations Convention of the Rights of Children, 1981.
“We seek an order for the first and second respondents to delete their respective tweets and several other posts on their social media accounts in reference to the underage girl-child. We also seek an order mandating the fourth and fifth respondents to withdraw the toddler from the care and custody of the third respondent.”
Obi had said on Twitter the girl’s video went viral:
“The fight to take Nigeria back is for the sake of this little girl, Chioma, and for the sake of every Nigerian child – Amina, Yinka, Akpan, Abdul, Asake- including the unborn children.
Chioma is now the poster child of this seminal campaign and process of national rebirth. I salute her passion and innocent gravitas. -PO.”
Meanwhile, Ojo-Lanre held he was seeking a court order to foster the child
“to any welfare home under the accreditation and supervision of the federal ministry of women affairs or other appropriate authorities for proper care, education, protection, and upbringing until she turns 18 years.
“In addition, we seek an order to disqualify the second respondent from participating in the 2023 presidential election for condoning, adopting, encouraging, and allowing the usage of the toddler for his rally.”
The activist also urged the court to prevent the first, second, and third respondents from posting, circulating, and printing the picture of the toddler.
He further submitted that the fourth and fifth respondents should initiate criminal complaints, arrest, and prosecution of the first, second, and third respondents for alleged exploitation and flagrant violation of the toddler’s rights.
However, no date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit as of press time.
