Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stalwart Chief Femi Fani-Kayode has said that the arrest and conviction of Nollywood star, Funke Akindele and her husband, Abdulrasheed Bello, for flouting social distancing regulation by hosting a birthday party was overbearing and unnecessary.
Fani-Kayode said that instead of the N100000 fine giving to them by the Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court a ‘warning would have been enough’
Fani-Kayode in a tweet said ‘The prosecution & conviction of Funke Akindele was overbearing & unnecessary. A warning would have been enough. This is especially so after she publicly expressed remorse. The court was crowded. Why don’t they prosecute those that were there as well, including the Magistrate? ‘
Recall that the Chief Magistrate, Yewande Aje-Afunwa
“The defendants shall pay a fine of N100, 000 within three days from today. They are to serve community service for a period of 14 days – for three hours from 9am-12pm daily – excluding Saturday and Sunday,” the Magistrate had said.
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The chief magistrate held that “The defendants shall be made to visit 10 important public places in Lagos State to generate awareness of the COVID-19 pandemic and the consequences of non-compliance with the laws created to curb the spread of the disease.
“Each defendant shall provide the names, addresses and GSM numbers of every person who attended the party within 24 hours.
“In order to ensure that COVID-19 does not spread, the defendants shall be immediately held in isolation for 14 days in a place only known to the Lagos State Ministry of Health.”
Aje-Afunwa reprimanded the couple for their action and said that the sentence would serve as a deterrent to others.
“The gathering was a reckless and irresponsible act. When thousands have died or have been infected and the whole world is mourning it is callous for an individual to throw such a huge party.
“While governments are paying millions to flatten the curve, the two defendants were strengthening the curve by throwing a party.
“Have the two defendants lived up to the expectations of the public and teeming youths that look up to them? The answer is, ” No,” she said.
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