RULAAC Berates Human Rights Abuse By Nigerian Police, Lauds DSS
The Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC) has berated the Nigerian Police for alleged persistent failure to act against abuse in the face of clear court judgments and public outrage.
RULAAC in a Statement signed by Okechukwu Nwanguma, the
Executive Director of RULAAC on Wednesday expressed concern with what he described as poor human rights record of the Police.
Nwanguma cited the case of Ms Glory Okolie, a young woman who was detained illegally by police personnel attached to the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) in 2021 for more than 150 days, during which she was abused and dehumanised.
He said in spite of a Federal High Court judgment which awarded her N60 million in damages and ordered her release, the Nigeria Police neither issued an apology, took any disciplinary nor remedial action.
The Rights Group urged the Inspector General of Police(IGP) to adopt a leadership approach grounded in transparency, justice, and accountability, similar to what is obtainable at the Department of State Services.
“RULAAC therefore calls on the IGP to publicly acknowledge and apologise for past and ongoing human rights violations by the Police under his watch.
“The IGP should comply fully with all outstanding judicial orders, including payment of damages to victims like Glory Okolie and set up a dedicated human rights audit committee within the Force to review and redress abuse
“Institute disciplinary action against officers who violate human rights, as a deterrent and commitment to reform.
The credibility of Nigeria’s democracy hinges on the conduct of its law enforcement agencies, we cannot continue to condone a culture where police impunity is the norm and citizens’ rights are routinely violated without consequence,” he said.
Meanwhile, RULAAC has commended the Director General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Mr Tosin Ajayi, for his commitment to upholding human rights, the rule of law, and institutional accountability.
Nwanguma said the DSS had taken steps to pay financial compensation to victims of unlawful arrest, wrongful detention, and mistaken identity as well as render official apologies to such individuals.
He expressed satisfaction with efforts of the DSS to release some unlawfully detained individuals including Abdulyakini Salisu, who had been in detention since 2022.
He said the DSS also provided medical support and rehabilitation to victims and took disciplinary action against erring operatives responsible for these violations.
“These actions represent a significant departure from the long-standing culture of impunity in Nigeria’s security sector and offer a concrete example of how security agencies can demonstrate,” he said.
