YRC calls for suspension of IGP Egbetokun amid damning Amnesty International report
A youth centric organisation, the Youth Rights Campaign (YRC), has called for the setting up of an Independent panel to probe the conduct of the police and other security agencies during the #EndBadGovernace protest.
The call followed a report by Amnesty International titled “Bloody August: Nigerian Government’s Violent Crackdown on #EndBadGovernance protests.”
YRC, in a statement by its national secretary, Francis Nwapa, also demanded the suspension of Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun to pave the way for a neutral probe.
The group commended Amnesty International for its detailed and impartial report, saying the document exposes the extrajudicial killings perpetrated by the security operatives during the #EndBadGovernance protests.
Nwapa added: “The report, which includes field research covering incidents in Kano, Jigawa, Katsina, Niger and Maiduguri, reaffirms our stance that lives were indeed lost during the protests and that these deaths were directly caused by the violent actions of security operatives.
“We hereby call for the suspension of the Inspector of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to allow for an impartial, independent and public probe into the conducts of the police and other security forces during the #Endbadgovernance protest in August. We hereby reject the in-house probe ordered by the IGP as an attempt to cover up the issue. As a party indicted by the Amnesty International report, the police cannot be trusted to carry out an impartial probe. To this extent, we call for the setting up of an independent probe panel democratically-constituted by the elected representatives of civil society, professional groups like the media, NBA etc, trade unions and youth associations to investigate the various allegations against the police and other security agencies which includes usage of excessive force, firing of live bullets, killing of peaceful protesters, torture of detainees as well as other heinous crimes as contained in the report of Amnesty International as well as several accounts of protesters and civil society groups.
“We are well aware that during the August protests, state-sponsored thugs attacked innocent protesters, such as those in Ojota, Lagos, and other parts of the country, while the police turned a blind eye. They made no attempt to arrest these thugs; instead, they went after peaceful protesters. This shows the disparity in treatment between law-abiding citizens and state-sponsored thugs.
“Another clear indication of the government’s partiality and disregard for fundamental human rights —Such as free assembly, free speech, and free press– is its consistent cover-up of thugs and hooligans who violently disrupted peaceful proceedings during the #Endbadgovernance protests nationwide. Journalists and peaceful protesters were also harassed. For example, in Lagos, during the first day of the EndBadGovernance protest, a protester was beaten on the head with a police baton. Similarly, a journalist, Jide Oyekunle, was harassed by the police operatives while covering the protest at eagle square in Abuja while another journalist, a reporter from the Premium Times, was assaulted by police officers in Abuja, alongside other protesters who were injured and arrested. Sadly, this unlawful action of the police was not restricted to Lagos and Abuja as we saw a familiar pattern in other parts of the country where the protest took place.
“We find it particularly troubling that the Inspector General of Police continues to carry on as if nothing is amiss despite that men under his command arrested children and tortured, starved and kept them in inhumane conditions, actions that are unacceptable under international law. This cruel treatment of minors is a clear violation of the Child Rights Act, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as well as several other international instruments to which Nigeria is signatory. As they say, impunity breeds contempt. We have no doubt that it is the failure of President Tinubu to sanction the IGP following the release of the minors that gave the Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum, the temerity to make the very shocking and highly disparaging statement last week wherein he suggested that the minors should have remained in detention contrary to the democratic norms.
“We hereby join Amnesty International and all change seeking Nigerians in calling for immediate action to address these injustices. Specifically, we demand the following:
“1. The prosecution of all police officers and officers of all other security agencies including the DSS and the army responsible for the killings of innocent Nigerians during the protests.
“2. The immediate suspension of the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, to allow for an independent, impartial, and transparent investigation into the human rights abuses and extrajudicial killings that occurred during the #EndBadGovernance protests.
“3. The constitution of an impartial and independent panel democratically-constituted by elected representatives of civil society organisations (CSOs), the Nigerian Union of Journalist (NUJ), the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), trade unions and other pro-democracy organisations and youth groups to ensure transparency and accountability.
“4. The dismissal of all charges against all peaceful protesters and the immediate release of all those detained nationwide. We also demand a halt to the continued assaults on democratic rights.
“5. Compensation for all victims of the violence and their families to help alleviate the impact of the tragic losses.
“6. The meeting of all demands of the #Endbadgovernance protest in August.”
