The Independent Investigative Panel on allegations of human rights violations by the defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) and other units of the Nigerian Police has insisted that the police tender the certified true copies of proceedings from the House Committee on Public Petitions to enable the panel arrive at an informed and just decision on the matter.
Justice Suleiman Galadima (retd), noted that contrary to its orders, the Police has failed to produce the certified true copies of proceedings from the National Assembly Public Petitions Committee in the case of the alleged extra-judicial killing of one Mr. Kennedy Yusuf.
This was while receiving other documents, in Abuja, tendered by the police from the House of Representatives Committee.
The chairman of the 11-man panel noted that the Police respondent, James Idachaba, at the last hearing in the matter had asked the panel to dismiss the case because same was done at the National Assembly Public Petitions Committee, because the case was frivolous and lacked merit.
Idachaba informed the panel that the matter had already been settled by the post-mortem carried out by an independent pathologist from the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, which indicated that Kenney Yusuf died from natural causes and not killed by the police as alleged by his family.
Continuing, Idachaba disclosed that the post-mortem was not carried out by the police, rather it was done by the family of late Kennedy Yusuf and the result was submitted by the family to the panel and admitted as exhibit, therefore the matter has been settled by the result of the post-mortem that the police was not involved in Kennedy’s death while in police custody.
It could be recalled that Mamman Danladi in his testimony pleaded with the panel that the police be ordered to compensate the family for the extrajudicial killing of his nephew, Kennedy Yusuf.
The chairman in his ruling, declared that the panel “insists the police must produce certified true copies of proceedings from the National Assembly’s Committee on Public Petition at the next adjourned date.”
The matter was adjourned to November 29, 2021 for continuation of hearing and earlier order made to produce proceedings subsist.
In another development, the case of alleged inhuman and degrading treatment and extortion brought before the panel by Ezeani Henry was also adjourned to November 29, 2021 due to the failure of the petitioner’s counsel, Maxwell Okpara, to serve the Police Counsel with his written address.
At the last hearing, the panel directed Okpara to serve the police his written address within a week and for the police counsel to respond to it within seven days of receipt.
Following the failure of petitioner’s counsel to send his written address, James Idachaba , counsel to police, urged the panel to foreclose the case and stated the police was ready to make oral submission in the matter.
In its ruling, the panel decided that the panel will look at the documents before it and come up with a report.