#EndSARS: NHRC Decries Lekki Shooting Spree
Condemns use of live bullets on protesters
BY VICTOR OSOWOCHI, ABUJA – The Nigerian Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has joined the growing list of individuals and groups decrying the shooting of unarmed protesters by military personnel at the Lekki axis of Lagos State on Tuesday night.
Executive Secretary of NHRC, Tony Ojukwu, said the Commission is “shocked at the use of live bullets against peaceful protesters as happened Tuesday in Lagos and other parts of the country where the state of emergency has been declared.”
Speaking while inaugurating the Independent Investigation Panel (IIP) set up by NHRC in Abuja on Wednesday, Ojukwu said the rules of engagement demand civility on the part of security operatives when facing unarmed and peaceful protesters.
The IIP is expected to probe allegations of rights abuses and other unethical conducts by members of the Nigeria Police Force, particularly the dissolved Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).
In his remarks, Chairman of the panel, Justice Suleiman Galadima, said the members will work to deliver on its mandate with utmost diligence and commitment.
Galadima is a retired Justice of Nigeria’s Supreme Court.
