Baba Suwe waits patiently for NDLEA to pay N25m

Popular Yoruba actor, Babatunde Omidina also known as Baba Suwe

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has filed an appeal for judgment, over the sum of N25million the Lagos State High court ordered it to pay the Yoruba actor Babatunde Omidina popularly known as Baba Suwe.

Justice Yetunde Idowu had on November 24, 2011 ordered the NDLEA to pay Omidina the money as damages. The money was to compensate Omidina for his arrest and detention by the agency for nine days without a valid court order.

The court also ordered the agency to publish a public apology to Omidina in two widely read national dailies. Idowu had said: ``The N25 million is to be deposited with the registrar in an interest-yielding account and in a bank agreed upon by the parties in the suit. ``This should be done pending hearing and determination of the appeal filed by the NDLEA against the court's judgment at the Appeal Court in Lagos”.

Idowu, while granting the application of stay of execution of the court's judgment filed by the NDLEA, said the above conditions must be met by the agency. According to her, leaving the judgment sum to the judgment debtor will ``smack of an unfair advantage’’.

She said the NDLEA had failed to provide sufficient proof of its actual resources and expenditure before the court. ``An order for stay of execution should not be sought to serve as a substitute for the judgment the trial court denied the party," Idowu ruled.