The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has confirmed the tragic killings in the Suleja area of Niger State, pledging to take decisive action.
This follows reports by Daily Trust on the deadly dispersal of protesters by security operatives, which resulted in several fatalities and left many passengers trapped for hours due to the road blockage.
Despite initial efforts to obtain a response from Wasiu Abiodun, spokesman for the Niger Police Command, no clarification on the shootings was provided. Abiodun later issued a statement regarding the protest but remained silent on the deaths, only mentioning the arrest of some alleged hoodlums.
Abdullahi Liman, Chairman of the Suleja branch of the NBA, confirmed the fatalities to our correspondent. Acting on directives from the NBA’s national president, Liman visited the residence of one of the deceased, Yahaya Nda Isah, to gather credible information for further action.
“The national level of the NBA has asked all the branches to constitute monitoring committees in respect of the protest. We are going around to see what is really happening. I got information that a man was shot dead and I came to the house of the victim (Yahaya Nda Isah) to confirm things for myself and I have seen the corpse. So, what we are doing now is to gather information in respect of the incident and I will reach out to the national level so that we know what to do next in respect of the issue. This cannot be denied,” Liman stated.
Previously, Daily Trust reported the NBA’s commitment to providing pro bono legal services for any peaceful protesters who faced assault or intimidation during the nationwide hunger protest. NBA President, Mr. Yakubu Chonoko Maikyau (SAN), had instructed the chairpersons of all 130 NBA branches across the country to monitor the protests. These measures were implemented in recognition of the citizens’ fundamental and constitutional rights to assemble and protest.
