The organised labour in Nigeria has described unconfirmed reports, putting number of casualties at 40+ in in two days of managing the EndHunger protest across the country.
In a statement signed by the Nigeria Labour Congress President, Joe Ajaero, organised labour said it has sufficient reasons, backed up by reports and video clips, to call to question the professionalism of security personnel as it represents nothing but MASSACRE of citizens.
The organised labour argues that had the security personnel deployed the same thoughtless brutal precision against bandits or other criminals, the country would have been an eldorado.
Labour says as the lead-agency in internal security management, the police bear the burden of , what it calls ‘the massacre of citizens.
The NLC President in a statement said the Kaduna State police command under the watch of Compol Audu Ali Dabigi represents the worst case scenario in which one of the fleeing protesters was heard on camera desperately appealing to deployed police personnel not to shoot until his voice was drowned by a hail of bullets with the resultant death of the protester on the spot and several others injured.
The statement said In the same breadth, Edo State Police Command under the personal command of COMPOL Funsho Adegboroye represents the best in crowd management as he could be heard interacting and cajoling the protesters and almost effortlessly bringing them under control.
Labour said It might be convenient to argue that the two states do have different socio-cultural millieux, however, an incontestable truth common to both, and indeed, all the states is that human life is sacred and should NEVER be taken.
Labour said it is deeply saddened by the wanton taking of life by trigger-happy police personnel.
Labour noted also in Asokoro, Abuja, under the command of Compol Bennett Igweh, protesters were heard querying why the police were shelling or tear-gassing them as they were marching solemnly without breaking a twig.
Organised labour used the statement to demand that the cops with blood stains on their hands be fished out for appropriate disciplinary action. Ditto their commanders.
Also, labour demands that adequate compensations should be paid to the families of casualties while government should be responsible for the treatment and rehabilitation of the injured.
For all those arrested, labour demands for their immediate and unconditional release.
Labour warns through the statement that on no account again should the police use live ammunition in managing protests no matter how difficult they get.
In the days ahead, labour says it will look forward to a better crowd control mechanism even as the new directive from the IGP would sound to some of the personnel as a license to kill without reason.
Labour says however, if the police in self-righteousness consider the advice in this statement as meddlesomeness and persist in their slaughter, they will be unwittingly creating a situation they were supposed to help avert in the first place, and, members of the organised labour will be left with no choice but to act in protection of ordinary citizens.
Editor : Ena Agbanoma
