The City Reporters
Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola
In defiance of public outcry, the Lagos State Government on Tuesday said it has filed an appeal against the court judgment which declared collection of toll on the Lekki-Ikoyi bridge illegal.
Mr Lawal Pedro (SAN), the Solicitor-General/Permanent Secretary, State Ministry of Justice, made this known in a statement.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that a Federal High Court in Lagos had on March 27 delivered the judgment in a suit filed by a lawyer, Mr Ebun Adegboruwa, against the government.
Justice Saliu Saidu had held that there was no subsisting law authorizing the collection of toll on the bridge by the government.
The non-compliance of the state governor had generated public outcry with many Lagosians going on social media to vent their anger at the insensitivity of the administration. Some of the aggrieved residents demanded the governor issue a statement on Tuesday to explain his defiance of the court injunction.
The reply came with the state government announcing it had already appealed the court decision.
According to the statement issued by the state’s chief counsel, the notice of appeal dated March 28, 2014 was filed on the same day at the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division.
“The state government is challenging the decision arrived at by the court to the effect that the fact of payment by its contractors to National Inland Waterways Authority was an admission by the state that the Federal Government had constitutional or legislative authority to regulate inland waterways throughout the country.
“We want the Court of Appeal to reverse the decision of the court to the effect that there was no law enacted by the Lagos State House of Assembly authorizing the state to impose tolls on public infrastructure,” it said.
According to the government, the State’s Public Private Partnership Law of 2011 empowers it to specify the service charges, user fees or tolls which are payable in respect of designated public infrastructure or public assets.
The government also asked for an order of stay of execution of the judgment.
It further asked the appellate court to restrain the respondents from giving effect to the judgment pending the determination of the appeal.
No date has been fixed for the hearing of the application.
Culled from NAN
