An Asaba-based businessman, Mr. Anthony Okolie, who was reportedly detained for 10 weeks by the Department of State Services (DSS) for owning a SIM card previously registered in Hanan Buhari’s name, has filed a lawsuit against the DSS, President Buhari’s daughter, and MTN for N500m compensation.
Detailing his ordeal, Okolie, who was arrested on July 19, 2019 in Asaba, alleged that he was held in handcuffs until September 22, 2019 by the DSS, who were waiting for Hanan Buhari, then schooling in the UK, to clear him, but she never did.
Okolie attached the receipt issued to him after purchasing the SIM card, along with the SIM certificate, to the lawsuit document. He revealed that he bought the SIM card on December 8, 2018, with the phone number 09035666662, for the sum of N1,000.
The lawsuit, with the reference FHC/ASB/CS/3/2020, seeks an order to “compel the respondents (DSS, Hanan, and MTN) to jointly or severally pay the applicant the sum of N500,000,000 only as general and aggravated damages for the gross and unlawful violation of the applicant’s right to acquire movable properties, freedom of movement, and self-dignity.”
Asserting that his detention contravened sections 35 and 34 of the 1999 Constitution, Okolie urged the court to declare it an abuse of his fundamental human rights.