For detaining them for one day, 123 men from Jigawa State have sued the Lagos State Government, seeking N1 billion compensation, PMNews Nigeria has reported.

Officials of the Lagos State Taskforce on Environmental Sanitation and Special Offences (Enforcement Unit) had on Friday arrested 123 men who came in a truck into Lagos from Jigawa with several motorcycles. The men were later released.

Other respondents include the Lagos State Commissioner of Police and the Chairman of the task force, Mr. Yinka Egbeyemi as well as the Attorney-General of Lagos State.

Abdullahi Yakubu, on behalf of himself and the other men filed a suit Federal High Court on Monday, demanding N1 billion reparation from the state government for profiling and detaining them.

The arrest had sparked a heated debate on social media over the manner in which the men were paraded and interrogated in front of the media, PUNCH reports.

In the suit with number FHC/L/CS/1519/19, the 123 men demanded the payment of N1bn as damages.

The men were asking for a declaration by the court that the prevention of the applicants numbering 123 from moving into Lagos State of Nigeria by the state government without prima facie incriminating evidence against the applicants constituted a flagrant violation of the 123 men’s right to move freely throughout Nigeria as guaranteed by section 41 of the Constitution Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).

The Jigawa men further prayed the court for a declaration that the detention of the men in the absence of prima facie incriminating evidence against them constituted a violation of their right to personal liberty protected by section 35 of the Constitution Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).

The men, who were represented by Mr. Abba Hikima and other lawyers, also asked the court to mandate the respondents to release to their seized motorcycles numbering 48, the truck conveying them, their wears and any other goods belonging to them in custody.

It states further, “An order of this honourable court awarding the sum of N1,000,000,000.00 (One Billion Naira) payable by the respondents jointly and severally to the applicants as reparation. An order of this honourable court directing the respondents to tender unreserved public apology to the applicants.”