.Say souls of the murdered citizens crying for justice
IBRAHIM QUADRI
Five years after the gruesome murder of a number of citizens by security operatives during the #EndSARS protest of October 2020, opposition political parties have called on the government to ensure security forces responsible for the death of innocent civilians are promptly brought to justice.
The call was made by the African Democratic Congress, ADC and Labour Party in Lagos State during separate telephone interviews with our correspondent.
They urged the government to take the protection of life and property more seriously, noting that souls of the murdered citizens are crying for justice.
While condemning the failure of the government to act decisively, the Lagos State chairman of ADC, George Ashiru, said, “Well I think it’s more than just speaking as an opposition party. It’s speaking about the sense of impunity that comes with our criminal justice system, whether as a member of the opposition or as just a normal citizen.
“We don’t want impunity in our politics, in our governance; we don’t want sacred cows; we don’t want a situation where people can do what they like and there is no assurance that justice will be served to those who are wrong.
“And I think that’s the discouragement that a state like Lagos which has a reputation that has been regarded as a Centre of Excellence.
“We have seen it even in recent times, where we have people that are already telling us that they are going to make it difficult for the opposition to vote or people to vote. All of this is part of what we are worried about. That the idea that people can just make a decision in the corridors of power. When it comes to people who are violating the constitution or laws, the state is very quick to prosecute them, and the state is very quick to demolish buildings. But when somebody has violated the same human rights laws, as long as the person has done it or is doing it in the name of the state, nothing happens and this is what we called impunity. This is part of what citizens ought to be concerned about: are we truly in a democracy or a military government?”
When asked on the way forward to put an end to police brutality, Ashiru said, “Police are not brutal just because they are brutal. They are brutal because there is impunity. There is some collusion between the powers that be, which makes it easy for them to do what they desire. Because they know nobody is going to prosecute them. Who will prosecute the police?
“The political leaders are themselves colluding in a way to disenfranchise people. So how would the same political leaders say, go and prosecute the police officer when their hands are not clean? Because police officers don’t just get up and decide to go somewhere. Somebody ordered them to do so.
“There is always someone who will give them the instructions to say, go to this place, go to that place. And they will say, Go and keep the order. But when they say, go and keep the order, they don’t give them limitations. They don’t say, No, you are not supposed to arrest citizens, or you are not supposed to brutalize them. And once they do it, and none of them is prosecuted subsequently, you are ordered to do so.
“I will say it again, that security forces don’t act on their own. They don’t leave their barracks and start going around. Don’t we have people in the police force who are family members? Almost every Nigerian has somebody in the police force.
“We know their character. We know who they are. We know that they don’t just get up and start shooting people and killing people,” he therefore advised, “Let’s take it seriously.”
On his part, the Secretary of the Labour Party in Lagos State, Sam Okpala, stated, “For me, it is reprehensible. It shows lack of seriousness as a nation; it shows that we do not respect the dignity of the human person; it shows that we don’t have regard for the life of citizens. The first primary responsibility of government is to secure the life and property of the citizens, which is the primary focus.
“So, to me, it’s not a cheering report that five years after the massacre, nobody has been brought to book. It’s reprehensible. The souls of the murdered citizens are crying for justice. And until we do that, I don’t think we’ll be making any progress as a country.
“Because why people do what they do here is because there’s no consequence or consequences. Everybody does what they or he likes and they get away with it. So it’s like an incentive to wrongdoing. But when people are punished for wrongdoing, it will serve as a deterrent for the people.”
He added “Well, for us as the opposition party, we cannot ask anybody to take laws into their hands. All we want to do is to still advocate that government does the right thing, no matter how late. It’s better late than never. And we cannot ask anybody to go and face the bullets again.
“But we want to appeal to the conscience of our leaders, we want to let them know that blood is thicker than water, we want them to know that respect for the dignity of a human person is a cardinal principle of existence. So they need to assuage the feelings and the cry of the murdered citizens of this country.”
Daily Champion recalls that some police officers have a long history of unethical, corrupt, and criminal conduct.
Also, the Police Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), formed in 1992 to combat armed robbery and other violent crimes, was especially notorious for brutality against citizens.
It has repeatedly been accused of committing the crimes it was created to respond to, and its members have been implicated in widespread human rights abuses, including extra-judicial killings, torture, arbitrary arrests, unlawful detention, extortion, and sexual violence.
However, several promises and commitments by the authorities to investigate alleged abuses by the group and ensure accountability yielded little or no meaningful results.
A group of young people led by a social media influencer known as Rinu Oduala decided to organize protests in Lagos, starting on October 7. Thousands of people joined them, while others took to the streets in other cities across the country, including Abuja, Kano, Ibadan, Port Harcourt, and several others.
Responding to the protests, the Nigerian authorities disbanded SARS on October 11 and made several commitments toward justice, accountability, and police reform.
But while these commitments were being announced, officers on the streets were attacking peaceful protesters with brutal force.
The highpoint of the protest took place on October 20, 2020, at Lekki Toll Gat,e Lagos when soldiers deployed to disperse the protesters opened fire on the civilians, where many lives being lost.
Despite the monetary compensation by the Lagos State Government to the victims, many are still awaiting justice five years after security forces violently suppressed protests calling for an end to police brutality in the country.
Although the total number of those killed by the military during the incident was not ascertained, witnesses described a gruesome scene with bloodied, lifeless bodies on the ground and many others with gunshot wounds whom they tried to rush to hospitals.
For a better society
Follow us across our platforms:
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/championnewsonline/
Facebook – https://web.facebook.com/championnewsonline
LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/company/champion-newspapers-limited/
https://x.com/championnewsng/
You can also like and comment on our YouTube videos.
https://youtu.be/QIBfD1tT80w?si=R4Qf3so2LxYu3GC2
