The Centre for Legal Advocacy for Citizens’ Rights (CLACR) has accused Akure-based lawyer, Mr. Femi Emmanuel Emodamori, of allegedly using the courts to harass government officials in Ondo State for political reasons.
In a statement signed by its Executive Director, Ewonowo Gbenga, and made available to journalists, the group expressed concern over Emodamori’s decision to drag the state’s Commissioner for Finance and the House of Assembly to court over statutory allocations to local governments and asset declarations of commissioners appointed by Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa.
CLACR alleged that the lawyer had constituted himself into a “diversionary agent of destabilisation” in the state, insisting that his activities were driven more by financial interests than genuine activism. The group questioned why Emodamori had not challenged past administrations in Ondo or in his home state, Kogi, if his motives were purely altruistic.
“We are particularly alarmed at the persistent harassment of public officials by Mr. Emodamori, who has become a meddlesome interloper, a self-acclaimed human rights lawyer, and in truth, a serial destabilizer. His endless suits have become a weaponized tool against the government and an attempt to intimidate democratic institutions, rather than a pursuit of genuine justice,” the statement read.
The group further alleged that Emodamori had himself violated state laws in the past, citing alleged breaches of building approvals. It described his recent actions as an attempt to usurp the responsibilities of the Code of Conduct Bureau and the state Assembly.
While acknowledging the constitutional right of citizens to seek legal redress, CLACR warned that such rights should not be abused for “political grandstanding and destabilisation.” The group urged the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and other regulatory bodies to investigate the lawyer’s conduct.
“Democracy thrives on constructive engagement, not calculated attacks clothed in legal formalism. Ondo State deserves the institutional respect and political stability to thrive under the leadership of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, free from harassment by individuals exploiting democratic freedoms while undermining them in practice,” it added.