Human rights abuses: NHRC invites CHRSJ to public hearing on SARS reform

Adeniyi Sulaiman

The leadership of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has invited the executive chairman of the Centre for Human Rights and Social Justice (CHRSJ), Comrade Adeniyi Sulaiman to attend public hearings on right abuses by the police personnel across the country.

In a notice marked NHRC/PSARS/2018/OG/4 signed by the Executive Secretary of the Commission, Mr. Anthony Okechukwu Ojukwu issued on Thursday, the five-day hearing is expected to hold between tomorrow, Tuesday 13^th and Saturday 17^th of November, 2018 in Lagos.

Ojukwu who stated that the event is expected to address all the petitions against police personnel across the six states making up the South West zone added that the hearing is expected to take place at the premises of the Lagos State High Court, Ikeja, Lagos will commenced by 9 am prompt everyday during the duration of the exercise.

According to the statement by the commission, the invitation is to address issues between CHRSJ (acting on behalf of one Sunday Adetiba & family) and FSARS, Magbon, Abeokuta, the Ogun State Police Command and the Inspector—General of Police.

The rights group had in the past written a petition to the commission over the plight of Adetiba who had allegedly been wounded by operatives of the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad in Magbon Abeokuta after having been detained illegally for months before his eventual release by the court.

While stating that the petition has been assigned to an official, the notice added that “You are hereby required to appear in person and bring your witnesses (if any) or through a legal practitioner of your choice or any other authorized representative before this commission on the 13-17, November.”

In his reaction, Sulaiman who expressed his desire to personally attend the events stated that the platform would provide the group the opportunity to prove the veracity of all petitions that have been forwarded to the commission cataloguing the series of abuses against Nigerians by men of the Nigeria Police Force.