Ex-Councillor Defends Petition To EFCC, ICPC Against Lagos LG Boss

A former supervisory councillor for Boundary Matters in Kosofe local government area, Ganiyu Oyebanjo, has explained to the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja why he wrote a petition against Moyo Ogunlewe, the council boss.

Oyebanjo told the court that the petitions were submitted in good faith and in line with his public duty, stating that he addressed actions he reasonably believed contravened existing laws and required investigation.

He stated this in his statement of defence against a N500 million libel suit filed by Ogunlewe against him and two others, Ashiroff Oyebanjo and Ibrahim Oyebanjo.

Ibrahim Oyebanjo is Ganiyu’s brother, and Ashiroff is his son.

In Suit No: ID/12984GCW/2025, Ogunlewe is demanding N500 million damages over petitions sent to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).

The council boss had claimed that the petitions defamed him and jeopardised his political career.

He, therefore, asked the court to issue a perpetual injunction to stop the defendants from making further statements about him.

Ogunlewe’s affidavit states that Ganiyu Oyebanjo, the third defendant, was a Supervisory Councillor on Revenue at Kosofe Local Government.

The Plaintiff accused the third defendant of submitting false petitions to anti-graft agencies between January 2024 and March 2025, thereby damaging his reputation.

He claimed that the contents of these petitions supposedly painted him as corrupt and fraudulent, harming his image and political standing.

However, in their defence, the defendants denied wrongdoing, admitting only that petitions were sent to the agencies.

They claimed the petitions were made in good faith, based on actions they believed violated laws, and were within Ganiyu Oyebanjo’s official duties.

The defendants argued they did not publish any defamatory material and urged the court to dismiss the case, asserting the petitions are protected by absolute privilege and that the court lacks jurisdiction under the Nigerian Freedom of Information Act 2011.

They also said the suit has no valid cause of action.

Ogunlewe responded by saying that petitioning authorities is lawful, but that false or libellous statements must not be included.

He argued that the libellous claims have seriously harmed his reputation and political career. The case is pending before Justice Adenike Shonubi.