The #EndBadGovernance Movement in Lagos has knocked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over his order for review of the cases of children arraigned for protesting.
Recall that 32 children were arraigned in an Abuja court among over 70 protesters yesterday.
The children who were malnourished and sick, have been in police detention since August.
During the arraignment, some of them fainted, causing nationwide uproar against their prosecution in a court of law since they were minors.
A statement by organisers of the #EndBadGovernance Movement in Lagos signed by Hassan Taiwo Soweto, Osugba Blessing and Oloye Adegboyega-Adeniji asked the president to order the immediate release of the protesters instead of calling for a review.
The statement reads, “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s attempt to save face by asking the Attorney General of the Federation to intervene in the matter of the arraignment of sick and malnourished child protesters by reviewing their case file is not only cynical and vexatious, it is also an insult on the collective intelligence of the Nigerian people.
“Since yesterday, the entire country and the whole world has been outraged by the sight of the sick and malnourished children in court. Many journalists who covered the proceeding as well as lawyers in the courtroom have described how they are traumatized by the experience. Even for many who saw the pictures on their televisions and social media platforms, the overwhelming collective response has been one of tears, revulsion and outrage. For a President of a country to see children treated in such gory manner and to still be talking about review of case files is a display of flagrant insensitivity.
“What we need now is not a review of the case files but an immediate and unconditional release of all the children so they can immediately access urgent medical treatment and psychosocial support, adequate food and nutrition and rejoin their families and loved ones.
“The children have suffered enough having spent the last three months in police detention. Children should be reformed and not condemned. They should be in school and not in a court room standing trial over an outrageous and false crime of terrorism and terrorism when all they did was protest due to the hunger and hardship caused by government anti-poor policies. It is a shame and a sign of how the judiciary has fallen into disrepute that the presiding judge lacked the courage of character and conviction to prevent his court from being used as a pliant tool of a rampaging dictatorial regime. Instead the judge admitted the children to bail to the tune of 10 million naira each amidst other onerous conditions and when they could not meet this, asked them to be remanded in Kuje prison till January next year.
“The condition of the children in court showed clear signs of torture. The fact that they appear sick and malnourished raises clear signs of ill treatment while in detention. To this extent, what we need now is not a review of the case files to determine what to charge them with. Rather those in whose care they have been since August and who obviously tortured and maltreated them need to be questioned. Torture is a grievous crime under Nigeria’s and international law. We hereby demand the immediate dismissal of the Inspector General of Police and the arrest and prosecution of police officers at the IRT and officials of other custodial centres where children were kept.
“As far as we are concerned, President Tinubu cannot claim to have been unaware since August that the police, operatives of the National Security Adviser as well as the Department of State Security (DSS) arrested over 2000 peaceful protesters including women and minors and have clamped them in detention since then where they were starved and subjected to torture. His attempt to distance himself only gives his guilt away.
“What has become apparent since August is that President Tinubu is running a civilian capitalist dictatorship that has no respect for citizen’s rights to freedom of expression and lawful assembly and under whose authority, arrest, brutalization and torture by security operatives has become an acceptable rule of engagement. Many of those who were arrested during the August protest have talked about how they were blindfolded during their arrest and how they were tortured in various ways while in custody of the IRT and the DSS in Abuja, Kaduna and different parts of the country. Protest has been completely criminalized by the regime. Right now, another group of arrested protesters, Adaramoye Michael Lenin and 10 others, are due in court next week Friday 8 November 2024, for commencement of their trial for treason.
“As a people, we have a duty to say enough is enough to this rampaging dictatorship. This is why the time has now come for all Nigerians of good conscience to stand up and unite against the Tinubu regime’s suppression of civil liberties and its imposition of anti-poor and pro-rich policies.
“We hereby once again reiterate our demand for immediate and unconditional freedom for all the minors in detention as well as all peaceful protesters standing trial. We call on civil society organisations, trade unions, students unions, NGOs and human rights and socialist groups as well as the Nigerian people to be prepared to march to the streets nationwide in peaceful protest and demonstrations until all the children as well as other peaceful protesters standing trial and all victims of state repression are freed.”
