Unmasking the Evil Formation of an Individual, Independent Parallel Panel of Enquiry

By Nwambu Gabriel

It is now in public domain that some individuals have orchestrated the setting up
of a private, individual, independent, and parallel Panel of Enquiry named the
Alliance for Survival of COVID-19 and Beyond (ASCAB). This panel has askedNigerians to submit complaints of human right violations encountered, witnessedor heard during the #ENDSARS protest. In a statement made available by ASCABtitled “Call for complaints of Human Rights Violations by Police, Military, and other Law Enforcement Agencies in Nigeria”, asked Nigerians to come forward to submit reports of human rights violations linked to the #ENDSARS.

There were no restrictions for victims who had already submitted to panels set up by the
government since according to ASCAB, outcomes and investigations might differ
in form and content. The panel is to receive complaints from the general public on
violations before, during and after the #ENDSARS protest across Nigeria.
However, our coalition has observed with dismay that these are the same
functions the judicial panel of enquiry set up by government is performing. The
duties as performed by the various judicial panels of enquiry are with utmost
integrity and credibility as fresh facts and evidences are emerging. If we may ask;
what is then the interest of the pioneers of this individual, independent parallel
panel of enquiry?

Intelligence report has shown that Amnesty International and Transparency
International has released the sum of $750,000 US dollars. This money is paid to a
foreign account and more would be released for this parallel panel progresses
provided that their clandestine aim is achieved.
The CNN, a news channel that has never seen anything good or reasonable in
Nigeria is waiting to give coverage to this independent individual body of enquiry.
This panel targets at bringing the entire Police, Military and Para Military
organizations in Nigeria to disrepute by presenting them to be as murderous as
ever in the world with an aim of blackmailing some targeted officers with a view
to prosecuting them at the ICC.

For the records, as civil society organizations domicile in Nigeria, it is our civic
responsibility to lay distinctions between fiction and facts, false and truth,
blackmail and reality. While we believe that we have some bad eggs within the
police, military and other law enforcement agencies, just like any other part of the
world as we have seen in the case of George Floyd in the US, an advanced
democratic nation of the world and a defender of human rights across the globe.
Nigeria we know is an evolving democratic nation. Government is also seen to be
committed to ensuring that perpetrators of heinous crimes or human rights
violators are brought to justice. The disbandment of the SARS is evident.
Again, the #ENDSARS came with varying degrees of fatalities.
Recent activities by unscrupulous elements have shown their desire to acquire
arms and ammunitions.

The Nigerian Police lost 37 officers and men who are performing their
constitutional duties. These officers and men are someone’s father, someone’s
mother, someone’s husband, someone’s wife, etc. We saw in video clips how
police stations were ransacked, weapons looted, policemen beaten to death and
their remains roasted and eaten as seen in OGIDI, Anambra state by the so-called
#ENDSARS protesters. Indeed, cannibalism was at play. Once again, this heinous
and barbaric act was under reported.

Nigerian Army lost 7 soldiers and 10 riffles of AK-47 to #ENDSARS protest. But
sadly in Nigeria, deaths recorded by the Nigerian Police, Military, etc. are analyzed
in a most lopsided manner. The deaths are perceived as normal since they are
personnel of the Armed Forces or law enforcement agencies. Wrong perception.
The #ENDSARS protesters burnt down 205 police stations. Some fire arms and
police uniforms were looted by criminals. With this, crime may likely take an
alarming dimension as an upsurge in criminal activity is expected to skyrocket.
A total of 196 policemen were injured,164 police vehicles were destroyed. The
Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, the Nigerian Customs Service and the
Nigerian Immigration Service lost infrastructures, equipment and other valuables
to the attack of hoodlums during the crises.

The Correctional Service Medium Security custodial centres in six states (Edo,
Lagos, Abia, Delta, Ondo and Ebonyi) were attacked with 1,957 inmates set free
and 31 members of staff injured. A total of 57 civilians were also killed during the
#ENDSARS protest.
Over 248 private stores owned by private individuals were looted. These are
people who are not connected directly with government nor the #ENDSARS
agitation. These are small and medium scale businesses employing thousands of
youths. Today, these businesses are in comatose with no possible means of
revival in an economy that has moved into recession following the global
pandemic and depression. The worse in 30 years.

Also, 71 public warehouses were looted. Food and materials meant for the
palliatives and treatment of covid 19 patients were stored in these warehouses.
Sadly, we saw individuals who made away with several bags of food stuffs. These
are people agitating to right the wrongs in the society as the #ENDSARS
supposedly depicts. But in an ideal situation, we rather opine that such looters
should also show some sign of exemplary leadership by taking just one (1) bag of
rice or semovita each as the case may be while he gives way for other persons to
get one bag as well. Ironically, in the video clips, we saw survival of the fittest at
play. We saw greed. We saw hooliganism at play.

The jail brake in Benin City, Edo state was even more scaring. Hoodlums under the
#ENDSARS cover besieged the reformation Centre shooting sporadically with
several casualties. Thirteen (13) states and the FCT were worse hit by the
#ENDSARS devastation. These includes: Lagos, Edo, Delta, Oyo, Kano, Plateau,
Osun, Ondo, Ogun, Rivers, Abia, Imo, Ekiti state and the FCT.
A total of 205 critical national security assets, corporate facilities and private
property were attacked, burnt or vandalized.

Several Banks were also looted across the nation. In Enugu state, it has been
reported that 3 branches of First Bank were vandalized and some money carted
away by #ENDSARS protesters. The protesters attacked several ATM machines in
Kano state. In Broad street, Marina, Lagos state, a new generation bank was
attacked and large unspecified sums of money carted away by protesters.
Lagos was the worst hit with over 200 BRT buses and station razed down by fire.
Over one Trillion Naira is required to fix the damaged infrastructure in Lagos state
alone in a country with 98 million people living within the extreme poverty. This is
also a country with a high unemployment rate. Now the funds that would have
been used to build industries which in turn would get a whole number of youths
off the street would be used to replace these critical national infrastructures first,
without which the state cannot function.

So any person or group of persons aiding, abating, sponsoring the formation of
individual, independent panel of enquiry which is parallel to the ones already
formed by government is grossly unpatriotic and does not have the interest of
this great nation at heart. We believe that this panel is orchestrated, it has
ulterior mission and prototype of targeted organizations and individuals to tarnish
their image and witch- hunt them. The panel seems to be replicating the script
written by Amnesty International and Transparency International. Of course, most
of these people have dual citizenship. So they can afford to burn down the
country and move to some other nation to live. But for some of us, our lives begin
and ends with Nigeria. We must therefore be warrying of these merchants of
destruction. We call on Nigerians to be watchful.
As members of the fourth realm, our coalition hereby disassociate ourselves from
this dastardly act, obviously inimical to the co-existence of this at great nation.