A strike by workers at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) stalled proceedings on December 5, 2025, at the court-ordered Coroner’s Inquest into the death of Mr Pelumi Onifade, a 20-year-old journalist with Gboah TV, who died under controversial circumstances on October 24, 2020, while covering the #EndSARS protests, forcing the investigating magistrate, Mrs Temitope Oladele, to adjourn the matter until January 21, 2026.
Before the adjournment, Mr Adebola Araba, who represented the Attorney-General of Lagos State, informed the Coroner that as a result of the ongoing strike at LASUTH, key personnel of the hospital were not available to receive her November 18, 2025, order and carry out her directive to produce “a comprehensive and specific report” relating to an unidentified body tagged 1385, on which the hospital was said to have conducted post-mortem examination in November 2020.
The inquest, presided over by Mrs Temitope Oladele, a District Coroner, is being conducted pursuant to the judgment of Justice Ayokunle Olayinka Faji of the Federal High Court, Lagos, delivered on July 19, 2024, in a suit instituted by Media Rights Agenda (MRA) against the Lagos State Government and Police authorities demanding, among other things, an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of the late journalist.
In his judgment, Justice Faji directed the Attorney-General of Lagos State to take all necessary steps to ensure an investigation into the circumstances of Mr Onifade’s death and to conduct a coroner’s inquest to ascertain the cause of death, as well as identify and prosecute those responsible for his death.
During the December 5, 2025, proceedings in the matter, which was attended by Mr Olatunde Onifade and Mrs Bose Onifade, parents of the deceased journalist, Mr Monday Arunsi, leading Ms Jennifer Wala, represented MRA and the late journalist’s family, while Mr Araba represented the Lagos State Attorney-General.
Mr Araba reported that he spoke with Dr Sanni at LASUTH, who confirmed that until the industrial action is called off, no staff would be able to attend to the Court’s directives, including the preparation of the comprehensive report which the Coroner had ordered the hospital to produce.
Responding, Mr Arunsi noted that at the last adjourned date, the Coroner had issued a specific order directing LASUTH to produce a detailed report relating to the remains tagged “1385”, which is the mortuary identification number assigned to the body believed to be that of the late Mr Pelumi Onifade.
According to him, the report was to cover all relevant information concerning the body, which was reportedly received from the Ikorodu General Hospital on November 3, 2020, by Mr Oluwole Shina Folorunsho, on behalf of the Chief Pathologist of Lagos State, Prof. John Obafunwa, for post-mortem examination.
Mr Arunsi said he had obtained a Certified True Copy of the court’s November 18, 2025, order, but noted that the directive did not specify a timeline for compliance.
He therefore asked for the Coroner’s guidance on whether a timeframe should be set within which LASUTH should comply with the order.
Responding, Mrs Oladele said with or without an expressly stated timeframe, LASUTH was obliged to comply with the Court’s directive, particularly in light of the longstanding and cooperative relationship between the Court and the pathology department.
She noted, however, that meaningful compliance could only occur when the ongoing strike is resolved.
Mrs Oladele said in the light of the current constraints and the need to await LASUTH’s resumption of full operations, she would adjourn the inquest to January 21, 2026, for mention.
