Lagos OPD recovers N815m, $52k for indigent residents

…resolves 14,000 petitions

By Alaba Oyebanji

Lagos State Government, yesterday, said the Office of the Public Defender, OPD, present Bureau of Public Defender, BPD, has recovered N815 cardinal and $52,000 successful compensation for indigent residents since its constitution 25 years ago.

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, represented by the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Mrs. Bolaji Dada, disclosed this astatine the metallic jubilee solemnisation of the bureau held astatine Victoria Island.

Sanwo-Olu said the OPD, created successful 2000 nether past Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu with Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, arsenic Attorney-General, had grown into a captious pillar of the state’s justness system.

He said: “The OPD was calved of a imaginativeness to marque justness disposable to each Lagosian, not conscionable the privileged. Today, that imaginativeness has go a reality.”

According to him, the bureau has managed astir 50,000 tribunal cases, resolved implicit 14,000 petitions done mediation, and maintained an 86 per cent occurrence complaint successful litigation.

The politician added: “The astir singular accomplishment is not successful the numbers but successful the quality stories—families reunited, dignity restored, victims of maltreatment protected, and voices erstwhile silenced present heard.”

Sanwo-Olu explained that the bureau was upgraded to a Bureau of Public Defender connected March 20, 2025, to heighten ratio and grow its reach.

He urged the bureau to clasp integer innovation, fortify partnerships and deepen its committedness to protecting the vulnerable.

The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro, SAN, said the OPD was a bequest of bold imaginativeness and had handled much than 200,000 petitions since inception.

Pedro recalled: “The OPD was created nether the visionary enactment of Governor Bola Tinubu, present President, with Prof. Yemi Osinbajo arsenic Attorney-General. From a humble portion nether the Directorate for Citizens’ Rights, it has go a full-fledged bureau with its office successful Surulere and 9 offices crossed the state—from Ajegunle to Ajah, Ikorodu to Epe, Badagry, Agege, Ogba and Alimosho.”

He added: “The travel of the OPD proves that erstwhile the government, the Bar, the Bench and civilian nine enactment together, the regularisation of instrumentality is strengthened and the susceptible are protected.”

Pedro, who joined the Ministry of Justice successful 1987 and roseate to Solicitor-General earlier retiring successful 2015, said witnessing the bureau’s translation from inception to metallic jubilee was humbling.

“I was determination astatine the beginning, erstwhile the OPD was archetypal conceived arsenic a bold effect to the urgent request to marque justness accessible to each indigent Lagosian. To basal present 25 years aboriginal and spot however acold it has travel is some humbling and inspiring,” helium said.

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