10th January, 2012
Human rights activists have called for the prosecution of the Divisional Police Officer, DPO, Pen Cinema Police Divisional Headquarters, Segun Fabunmi, for allegedly killing a youth yesterday at Ogba area of Lagos State, Southwest Nigeria.
The DPO was alleged to have shot dead Demola Aderinto at Ogba while he was playing football during the nationwide protest, an action that led to protest in the area.
Though the Commissioner of Police Yakubu Alkali ordered the arrest of the killer cop, activists want full scale prosecution and that the matter must not be swept under the carpet by the police.
Foremost lawyer and activist, Bamidele Aturu called for full scale prosecution of the DPO, saying that the public had the right to know where he was being kept by the police.
He said it was senseless to kill an innocent citizen during a peaceful protest that never turned violent, adding that he would be happy if the Attorney General would give a fiat to lawyers to prosecute him directly instead of leaving the matter in the hands of the police.
Yinka Odumakin, the Save Nigeria Group scribe, said the DPO must be made to face the music, saying that the human right world would press for his prosecution.
“He must be prosecuted and made to face the music. We will press for his prosecution, he must go to the gallows and if not, we will not let him go. He has killed an innocent person,” he said.
Constitutional lawyer, Itse Sagay said he was satisfied that the Commissioner of Police had ordered the arrest of the culprit and that he was sure he would be prosecuted accordingly.
Former Governor of Kaduna State, Alhaji Balarabe Musa also called for the prosecution of the policemen who killed two protesters in Kano State yesterday, saying that the security operatives that carried out the act must be investigated and made to face the music.
Publicity Secretary, Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, Mr. Joe Igbokwe said: “the Nigerian police have no right to take the life of anybody in a legitimate protest to call the attention of President Jonathan and his men to the plight of hapless Nigerians under bondage as a result of PDP’s bad leadership.
“Those involved in killing a harmless protester in Ogba, Ikeja and wounding several others should learn from the trial of former President Mubarak of Egypt who presided over Egypt while security men killed hundreds of protesters.
“The DPO who fired the shot should be charged with murder. Lagos ACN fully understands what is at stake in Nigeria and we are standing by the people of Nigeria in this matter of this wicked and unpopular oil subsidy removal.
“The truth remains that there are many unanswered questions on the part of PDP-led federal government in this oil subsidy removal and until they get serious and come clean with facts and figures, Nigerians will not trust them,” he stated.
The state Police Command spokesman, Mr. Samuel Jinadu, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, DSP, confirmed to P.M.NEWS that the DPO has been arrested and is currently being interrogated over the incident.
The late Aderinto was playing football with some other young men when the DPO and his men stormed the area.
The DPO and his men allegedly shot into the air to disperse the harmless street footballers. But when they refused to be intimidated, the DPO and his men opened fire on them, killing Aderinto while three others were severely injured and were rushed to a nearby hospital.
Fabunmi and his men lied that they opened fire on the defenceless footballers because they attempted to disarm them.
Chairman Ifako-Ijaiye Local Government Area of Lagos State, Apostle Oloruntoba Oke, who visited the Pen Cinema Police Division demanded for justice, adding that the autopsy report on the deceased might confirm the police claim or otherwise.
He condemned the unwarranted attack on innocent citizens in the council area and called on the residents to be calm and not to allow the crises degenerate further.
—Kazeem Ugbodaga