Controversial musician Afeez Fashola popularly known as Naira Marley has agreed to shoot a video against the spread of COVID-19 pandemic in collaboration with the Lagos State Government.
Marley told an Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos via an April 9 letter that he would make the video at his cost.
The video will be in satisfaction of part of the conditions for the state to withdraw a social distancing charge against him. “I hereby undertake to join the Lagos the Lagos State campaign against the spread of the COVID-19 by making a free audio-visual publication towards the campaign against COVID-19,” Marley told Chief Magistrate Yewande Aje-Afunwa in the letter.
Mrs. Aje-Afunwa approved the withdrawal of the charge against the musician.
She also approved the withdrawal of the charge against Marley’s co-defendants Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain Babatunde Gbadamosi and his wife, Folashade.
The Chief Magistrate made the order following the three defendants’ compliance with conditions set by the government.
Lagos State Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Mr Yhaqub Oshoala told the court that the Gbadamosis and Marley had accepted and undertaken to comply with all of the State’s conditions for the withdrawal.
He noted that they had “undertaken to work with the government to tackle the COVID 19 pandemic.” The conditions are that the trio should individually offer a personal apology to the president and governor; give an undertaking to comply with the COVID-19 regulations, and go into self-isolation for 14 days and report back to the court.
Defence counsel, Mr Olawale Akoni (SAN) for Gbadamosi, Mr Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN) for Mrs Gbadamosi, and Miss Damilola Ayinde-Marshall for Marley corroborated his statement.
Aje-Afunwa ruled: “Upon the oral application made by the Director of Public Prosecutions on behalf of the Attorney-General of Lagos State pursuant to Sections 71 and 73 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law of Lagos State (ACJL) and pursuant to the fact that the three defendants have complied with conditions for the withdrawal of the charge.
