Thursday, 28th March 2024
To guardian.ng
Search

Lekki Toll Gate shooting: Lawmakers, others seek immediate prosecution of culprits

By Azimazi Momoh Jimoh, Abuja
26 October 2020   |   2:31 pm
President Muhammadu Buhari was on Monday urged to immediately commence prosecution of all soldiers found culpable in the deadly Lekki Toll Gate shooting. Vice-Chairman of the Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream), Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah, in a statement, described the shooting as a gross violation of the fundamental right of the #EndSARS protesters. Describing the…

President Muhammadu Buhari was on Monday urged to immediately commence prosecution of all soldiers found culpable in the deadly Lekki Toll Gate shooting.

Vice-Chairman of the Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream), Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah, in a statement, described the shooting as a gross violation of the fundamental right of the #EndSARS protesters.

Describing the shooting as barbaric, Ubah said, “I am deeply saddened by reports of extrajudicial shootings and barbaric killing of peaceful protesters in Lekki-Lagos, Nigeria. I wish to categorically condemn in its entirety, these shootings by security operatives who are meant to protect the citizens.”

According to him, “these unlawful shootings by the military and security agents at unarmed protesters are a gross violation of the right to life as enshrined in Section 33 of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999; Article 4 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, and Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.”

He said the prosecution would go a long way in serving justice to the deceased and their loved ones.

Another lawmaker from the North-West Geo-political zone said the shooting has taken Nigeria farther away from the group of civilised countries of the World.

He lamented that a country where people could just be shot without respect for human rights and dignity cannot be respected by the International community.

On the hoarding of the COVID-19 palliatives which had resulted in the current massive breaking of warehouses across the country, a former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Timi Frank, on Sunday, urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) to probe and prosecute Governors and Government agencies hoarding COVID-19 palliative meant for Nigerians.

He also called on President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently share all the money donated to the Federal Government as COVID-19 support to poor and vulnerable persons in the country.

Frank, who made these assertions in a statement in Abuja, said that both the Federal and state governments should be blamed for deliberately keeping away what rightly belongs to the people.

He said that videos on social media showing thousands of Nigerians besieging government warehouses and forcefully helping themselves with such food items underscore the level of hunger in the land.

Meanwhile, Senate President Ahmad Lawan, called all Nigerians to be calm and assured them that the Federal Government will ensure justice for all.

He said the National Assembly is fully committed to putting the necessary legislation in place for comprehensive reform of the police to enhance their institutional integrity and efficiency.

Lawan in a statement re-assured youths that the National Assembly will collaborate with the executive to ensure justice for victims of misconduct and rights abuses by personnel of the disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the Nigeria Police.

“In spite of the unfortunate hijack of the protests against police brutality by hoodlums to unleash horrifying violence, arson, looting and wanton destruction of public and private property on the country, we will ensure that government fulfils the commitment it has made to the well-meaning agitators for police reform and good governance.” Lawan stressed.

In this article

0 Comments