#EndSARS: Edo Panel Submits Report On 135 Petitions

The report of the 28-member Judicial Panel of Inquiry
constituted to investigate police brutality, human rights abuses
and extrajudicial killings by the disbanded police unit, the
Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), in Edo State, has been submitted
to Governor Godwin Obaseki.

While receiving the report yesterday from the Chairman of the
panel, Justice Ada Ehigiamusoe (rtd.) at the Government House,
Benin, Governor Obaseki hailed the members for their commitment,
courage and diligence, while assuring that his administration would
carefully review the report and ensure that the recommendations
were implemented.

A member of the panel, in an exclusive interview in Benin-City
on Sunday, disclosed that N288 million was recommended as
compensation for victims of police’s excesses in Edo, consisting of
N98 million as enforcement of courts’ judgments and N190 million as
general compensation for the other petitioners/complainants.

The panel’s member said: “Sittings of the panel ended about
three months ago. The report was to be submitted on July 5. We
waited in Government House, Benin-City for more than five hours,
but Governor Godwin Obaseki was not available for the properly
scheduled submission of the report.

“The Secretary to Edo State Government (SSG), Barr. Osarodion
Ogie, later informed the panel’s members that Governor Obaseki was
outside the state and he missed his flight. SSG also told us that
the Edo Governor asked him to inform us that he would want to
personally receive the report, thereby rescheduling the submission
to July 12,” but eventually submitted yesterday.

Obaseki, while receiving the report, stated that it would be
gone through with great diligence.

He said: “We will look at each and every recommendation made and
where clarifications are needed, the panel will be contacted.

“This is a nationwide activity. In our last National Economic
Council (NEC) meeting, it was decided that all states should submit
their reports on the investigations carried out during the #EndSARS
protests. We expect that we have both the national response and
Edo’s specific response on the destruction experienced during last
year’s #EndSARS protest.”

The Governor also advised that to forestall a recurrence of the
#ENDSARS protests in the country, political leaders should listen
to the yearnings of their people, knowing that the people gave them
the political mandate through the ballot.

He said: “The #ENDSARS demonstrations of last year are a pointer
to the fundamental injustices in our society. All of us,
particularly our political leaders in this country, must begin to
understand that if we do not listen to the yearnings of our people
more, and continue to carry on as if we are in power for ourselves,
the #ENDSARS protests that we experienced last year will be a joke.
We pray that the situation does not reoccur.

“In Edo State, we will continue to enforce the rights of our
citizens and ensure that we focus on our young ones, making sure
that they are our priority. We will study this report and ensure
that we implement the findings to the latter.”

The Chairman of the panel had earlier thanked Obaseki for the
opportunity to serve the people of Edo state.

She disclosed that the panel received 170 petitions and struck
out 25 for lack of diligence, while ten others were dismissed for
lacking in merit, with 135 petitions considered to be
meritorious.

Justice Ehigiamusoe (rtd.) said: “Ten petitions, of 135, sought
the enforcement of judgments of various high courts against the
police for acts of brutality and extrajudicial killings.

“We recommended the payment of compensations to the victims
and/or their families for the aforementioned acts of the
police.”

It will be recalled that during the #EndSARS protests in Edo on
October 19 last year, hoodlums attacked the Maximum Correctional
Centre, popularly referred to as White House, on Sapele Road, and
Oko Medium Correctional Centre on Airport Road, both in Benin,
releasing almost 2,000 inmates, mostly condemned criminals, who
immediately returned to crime.

The hoodlums also razed seven police stations and vehicles in
the premises, after looting the arms, ammunition, uniforms and
other valuable property worth millions of naira, making the
affected policemen and the Divisional Police Officers (DPOs) to
relocate for many months to Edo police headquarters at the
Government Reservation Area (GRA), Benin, while the promise by
Obaseki to rebuild the burnt police stations is yet to be
fulfilled.

The report of the 28-member Judicial Panel of Inquiry
constituted to investigate police brutality, human rights abuses
and extrajudicial killings by the disbanded police unit, the
Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), in Edo State, has been submitted
to Governor Godwin Obaseki.

While receiving the report yesterday from the Chairman of the
panel, Justice Ada Ehigiamusoe (rtd.) at the Government House,
Benin, Governor Obaseki hailed the members for their commitment,
courage and diligence, while assuring that his administration would
carefully review the report and ensure that the recommendations
were implemented.

A member of the panel, in an exclusive interview in Benin-City
on Sunday, disclosed that N288 million was recommended as
compensation for victims of police’s excesses in Edo, consisting of
N98 million as enforcement of courts’ judgments and N190 million as
general compensation for the other petitioners/complainants.

The panel’s member said: “Sittings of the panel ended about
three months ago. The report was to be submitted on July 5. We
waited in Government House, Benin-City for more than five hours,
but Governor Godwin Obaseki was not available for the properly
scheduled submission of the report.

“The Secretary to Edo State Government (SSG), Barr. Osarodion
Ogie, later informed the panel’s members that Governor Obaseki was
outside the state and he missed his flight. SSG also told us that
the Edo Governor asked him to inform us that he would want to
personally receive the report, thereby rescheduling the submission
to July 12,” but eventually submitted yesterday.

Obaseki, while receiving the report, stated that it would be
gone through with great diligence.

He said: “We will look at each and every recommendation made and
where clarifications are needed, the panel will be contacted.

“This is a nationwide activity. In our last National Economic
Council (NEC) meeting, it was decided that all states should submit
their reports on the investigations carried out during the #EndSARS
protests. We expect that we have both the national response and
Edo’s specific response on the destruction experienced during last
year’s #EndSARS protest.”

The Governor also advised that to forestall a recurrence of the
#ENDSARS protests in the country, political leaders should listen
to the yearnings of their people, knowing that the people gave them
the political mandate through the ballot.

He said: “The #ENDSARS demonstrations of last year are a pointer
to the fundamental injustices in our society. All of us,
particularly our political leaders in this country, must begin to
understand that if we do not listen to the yearnings of our people
more, and continue to carry on as if we are in power for ourselves,
the #ENDSARS protests that we experienced last year will be a joke.
We pray that the situation does not reoccur.

“In Edo State, we will continue to enforce the rights of our
citizens and ensure that we focus on our young ones, making sure
that they are our priority. We will study this report and ensure
that we implement the findings to the latter.”

The Chairman of the panel had earlier thanked Obaseki for the
opportunity to serve the people of Edo state.

She disclosed that the panel received 170 petitions and struck
out 25 for lack of diligence, while ten others were dismissed for
lacking in merit, with 135 petitions considered to be
meritorious.

Justice Ehigiamusoe (rtd.) said: “Ten petitions, of 135, sought
the enforcement of judgments of various high courts against the
police for acts of brutality and extrajudicial killings.

“We recommended the payment of compensations to the victims
and/or their families for the aforementioned acts of the
police.”

It will be recalled that during the #EndSARS protests in Edo on
October 19 last year, hoodlums attacked the Maximum Correctional
Centre, popularly referred to as White House, on Sapele Road, and
Oko Medium Correctional Centre on Airport Road, both in Benin,
releasing almost 2,000 inmates, mostly condemned criminals, who
immediately returned to crime.

The hoodlums also razed seven police stations and vehicles in
the premises, after looting the arms, ammunition, uniforms and
other valuable property worth millions of naira, making the
affected policemen and the Divisional Police Officers (DPOs) to
relocate for many months to Edo police headquarters at the
Government Reservation Area (GRA), Benin, while the promise by
Obaseki to rebuild the burnt police stations is yet to be
fulfilled.