The Int’l Society for Civil Liberties & Rule of Law-INTERSOCIETY, yesterday, 16th Dec 2019 sent two detailed letters to Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Barr Boss Gidahyelda Mustapha and Chairman of the Police Service Commission, Retired IGP Musiliu Smith.
In the detailed letter to the SGF, we demanded for A Joint Investigation Board into the Oraifite-Anambra Police and Army Mayhem of 2nd Dec 2019 so as to establish ‘criminal’ and ‘civil’ involvements and their ‘service’ and ‘civil’ parties; with the overall aim of ensuring justice to the victims, justice to the society including deterrence and the peace loving people of Oraifite; and justice to the perpetrators or ‘criminal parties’.
“In the second letter to the PSC, we specifically demanded for investigation of CP John Abang, ACP Oliver I. Inoma-Abbey, CSP Alexander Chigozie Onwuka, ASP Joseph Akubo and other police officers that vicariously or directly took part in the catastrophic mayhem. The PSC investigation under demand is for purpose of ascertaining the enormity of professional misconducts of the named officers and their immediate dismissal from the NPF if found culpable.
“In the Oraifite catastrophic mayhem, the Nigeria Police and their partners in crime including soldiers gravely messed up and acted abominably and atrociously; and having realized the quantum of ‘service’ atrocities perpetrated including massive burning and destruction of properties, they hurriedly resorted to ‘frame-ups’ and ‘collateral atrocities’ so as to escape justice and moral damnation.
Remember similar service atrocities in Sept 2017 in Abia State when having realized the gravity and enormity of atrocities perpetrated against the defenseless citizens of the State including massacre and maiming of hundreds in three days, the Defense Headquarters and the Federal Government hurriedly declared the victim group (IPOB) a “terrorist group” so as to escape local and int’l justice. Unless all the ‘service’ perpetrators in the Oraifite mayhem are fished out and punished accordingly, otherwise, such ‘service’ atrocities will become a routine or operational tradition in the Nigerian security and defense establishments”, Emeka Umeagbalasi, a criminology and security graduate and head of Intersociety said today.
SGF’s Powers & Functions Upon Which We Wrote
The letter to the SGF was in recognition of powers and functions so vested, numbering fifteen. The SGF is also a creation of Section 171 (2) (a) of the Constitution of Nigeria 1999 as amended. The Powers and functions of the SGF important and relevant in the instant case include: serving as (a) Secretary to the Council of State or Federal Executive Council, (b) coordinating the activities of Ministries and Government Agencies on the implementation of Government decisions, policies and programs, in addition to dealing with constitutional, political and socio-economic matters as may be referred to by the Presidency; and (c) coordinating Administrative Tribunals (or Investigation Board), Commissions and Panels of Enquiry; and national security and safety matters.
‘Joint Investigation Board In Our Mind’ & Its Terms Of Reference
The ‘Joint Investigation Board’ under request is not ‘a Commission of Enquiry’ or ‘a Judicial Commission of Enquiry’, which is or are ‘toothless bulldog’ and ‘time wasting’. Ours is ‘a Joint Investigation Board’ with ‘criminal elements’ and ‘civil elements’ content and functionality; to be subdivided into ‘criminal’ and ‘civil’ investigations sub boards. Members of the ‘criminal investigation sub board’ shall be drawn (not monopolize) from ‘DMI’, ‘SSS’, ‘Force CID’, ‘Office of the National Security Adviser’ and ‘the Police Service Commission’ and may further include ‘civil’ or independent criminologists, criminal lawyers, ‘crime investigative journalists’ and intelligence experts.
