Group Demands $5bn Compensation for Victims of Extra-judicial Killings: IPOB, Shi'ites, Southern Kaduna Named as Potential Beneficiaries

Civil Society Organisations have com­menced a vigorous campaign against ex­trajudicial killings by agents of the Federal Government.
The organizations want the Federal Government to pay a hefty compensation of $5 bil­lion to the family members of thousands of victims of extraju­dicial killings nationwide.
The campaign is being mounted by a coalition of Civ­il Society Organisations led by the International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law, also known as Intersociety.

The CSOs put the figure of Nigerians killed by security agents and non-state actors un­der the administration of Pres­ident Muhammadu Buhari at 10,000.

Intersociety said that the vic­tims were killed in very brutal circumstances by security agents and marauding Fulani herdsmen.
Intersociety Board Chair­man, Emeka Umeagbalasi, listed the possible beneficiaries as fami­lies of slain members of the Indig­enous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), Shi’ites, Southern Kaduna Chris­tians and victims of Fulani herds­men’s attacks.
He spoke at a press confer­ence yesterday in Ezinifite com­munity, Aguata Local Govern­ment Area, Anambra State.
Umeagbalasi said that all the killings were recorded in the last 20 months of President Muham­madu Buhari’s administration and proposed the name of the project as: $5 billion State Crime Victims Compensation Scheme.
He said: “The Buhari Ad­ministration/Federal Govern­ment of Nigeria should set aside $5 billion for adequate compensa­tion of over 1,750 victims of state murders and 4,000 victims of Po­lice Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS)/Army custodial killings, as well as over 2,800 unarmed Christians killed by nomadic Fu­lani between June 2015 and Jan­uary 2017.
“The $5 billion State Crime Victims Compensation Scheme, which will be subject to 50% up­ward review every five years if un­paid, should be divided into four categories of: $1 billion to mem­bers or families of the 270 slain members of IPOB and other pro-Biafra campaigners; $500 million to over 370 terminally shot and injured pro-Biafra campaigners; $1.5 billion to 1,120 slain mem­bers of the Shi’ite Muslims and their IMN, as well as $500 million for 400 of their members termi­nally shot and wounded”.
“The sum of $500 million should be set aside by the Bu­hari government/Federal Gov­ernment of Nigeria through the Ministry of Police Affairs for compensation to 4,000 victims who were killed in the past 20 months by way of custodial kill­ings arising from torture and wilful custodial shootings. This should be done on the basis of proper identification of dead vic­tims by their immediate families and lawyers. The remaining $1 billion should be paid by the Bu­hari government to the families and churches of over 2,800 dead Christians who are victims of the nomad Fulani Jihadism in Nige­ria since June 2015’’.
Intersociety also presented, at a press conference, its special re­port on the 20 months of Presi­dent Buhari’s leadership in Nige­ria entitled “Welcome to Bleeding Republic of Nigeria: A Land Flowing with Blood and Tears”.
It lamented that the number of citizens arrested and dumped into several months of deten­tion without trial in the past 20 months was both alarming and shocking.
Other board members of In­tersociety at the event were Obi­anuju Joy Igboeli, Head, Civil Liberties and Rule of Law Pro­gramme; Chinwe Umeche, Head, Democracy and Good Govern­ance Programme; Grace Amara­chi, Head, Public Security and Safety Advocacy Programme and Ndidiamaka C. Bernard, Head, Int’l Justice and Human Rights Programme.
Intersociety accused the State Security Services (SSS) as sub­stantially responsible for gross abuse of Nigerians’ constitution­al and legal rights and the muz­zling of press freedoms and dem­ocratic free speech.
It also accused the agency of “reckless disobedience of court orders and other judicial pro­nouncements,” adding that cas­es of harassment and intimida­tion of independent journalists and bloggers went viral in the past 20 months.
In all, the state of human rights violations under the Bu­hari government is “horribly and alarmingly widespread,” Umeag­balasi said.
Intersociety urged Buhari to end the “senseless massacre” by both security forces and armed opposition groups, particularly the Fulani herdsmen and Boko Haram insurgents, of defenceless Nigerians and other forms of a re­gime atrocities.
“There should also be total policy reversal, including uncon­ditional release of all political de­tainees and end to the policy of militarism and militarization”.
“The Buhari government must arrest and prosecute all the perpetrators of the above men­tioned heinous crimes. Those to be arrested and prosecuted in­clude the current Chief of Army Staff, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) from August 2015 to May 2016, the current IGP of Police, the Chief of Air Staff, the Chief of Defence Staff, the GOC 82nd Division of the Nigerian Army, Enugu (from August 2015 to May 2016); the Commanders of 302 Artillery Regiment, Onit­sha, 144 Battalion of the Nigeri­an Army, Aba (August 2015 to May 2016 or till date) and cur­rent Commander of the 6th Di­vision of the Nigerian Army, Port Harcourt; as well as Major M.I. Ibrahim of the Nigerian Military Police, who militarily led the May 29th and 30th Biafra Heroes Day massacre in Nkpor, Onitsha and Asaba.”
“Others are: the Commissioners of Police of Anambra and Abia States (August 2015 to May 2016), the Aba Area Commander (between January and February 2016), the Deputy Commissioner of Police for Operations in Anambra State between December 2015 to May 2016 (now CP Johnson Babatunde Kokomo), etc; as well as the present Governors of Anambra, Abia and Kaduna States (for aiding the security agencies and criminal entities in the mass killing of unarmed and innocent pro-Biafra campaigners and Christian/Shi’ite faithful respectively in their states).

“The principal officers of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria should be arrested and charged for man­slaughter, as well as the immedi­ate proscription of the registered organisation and presidential declaration of same as a terrorist organisation. Where the Buhari administration/Federal Govern­ment of Nigeria fails in 90 days to bring to justice the above men­tioned public office holders and their sub commanders and foot perpetrators, as well as named non-state actor perpetrators; then the international community and other international non-state ac­tors, particularly the ICC, the UN Security Council and African Re­gional Criminal Courts should act without further delays in ac­cordance with the International Law’s Principles of Complemen­tarity and No Impunity,” he said.