How are the police in your country? I know that in the US (at least according to Hollywood, the police are a thin line away from being criminals, and get involved in a lot of cover-ups). In Nigeria for a long time now, the police were a far cry from being the police. They were just... criminals. That may be about to change...
On June 8, 2005, five young men in Ifeanyi Ozor, Anthony Nwokike, Paul Ogbonna, Chinedu Meniru, Ekene Isaac and a young school leaver, Miss Augustina Aregbu were cruising home after an outing at a night club. It was in the wee hours.
A police patrol team saw the vehicle approaching from Gimbiya Street in the Federal Capital Territory. The policemen flashed their torchlight but the driver would not stop. A deputy police commissioner in charge of operations, Danjuma Ibrahim used his car to block the oncoming vehicle. It brushed the senior officer’s car and headed on.
And suddenly, all hell was let loose. Ibrahim allegedly opened fire on the occupants. And by the time he allegedly released his finger from the trigger of his AK 47 rifle, four young men in the 406 Peugeot car were motionless and lifeless.
Luck momentarily smiled on Aregbu and one other member of the travelling party. But it was just for some fleeting period. Later, the duo were summarily murdered.
As the news filtered into town, tension began to build. The police had announced that the six persons were suspected armed robbers who were killed in exchanges of gun battle with the policemen on patrol.
But the Igbo traders at the Apo village would not be convinced that their dead colleagues were armed robbers who had been dealt a lethal, mortal blow. Angry and wanting to show their disapproval of the police explanation, the traders took to the street and burnt the Apo Police Station in the process.
Of course, that did not assuage the bitter feelings of Nigerians who wanted the authorities to unmask the brains behind the killings, and the true reasons for the murders.
Enter Okiro’s panel
Following the persistent calls by Nigerians for the probing of the remote and immediate causes of the contentious death of the six persons, the Acting Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Sunday Ehindero set up a police probe panel that was headed by Mr. Mike Okiro, a Deputy Inspector-General.
The panel went into action straight away and summoned some policemen who allegedly played one role or the other in the death of the traders. But the submissions made to the panel by the policemen irked as many people as they did not convince others.
And soon, questions were asked as to the impartiality of senior police officers trying their own men. Ehindero promised that there would be no cover-up, but the families of the slain persons and other Nigerians would not believe him. And did not trust the panel either.
Undeterred, Okiro and his team continued to hold session. But from Inspector Suleiman Audu to ASP Nimram Nanpon and on to other cops fingered, the policemen maintained that those shot were armed robbery suspects.
With the fears being continuously raised that the process might not lead to a transparent result, the yearning for an independent panel of inquiry grew by the day.
New twists, as FG sets up another probe
In apparent respect for the views widely expressed by the people, the Federal Government, on June 24, 2005, announced the disbandment of the Okiro panel and set up a Judicial Commission of Inquiry headed by Justice Olasumbo Goodluck. While inaugurating the body, the Attorney-General and Justice Minister, Akinolu Olujimi had charged them to unearth the immediate and remote causes of the unfortunate deaths.
Shocking revelations and confessions have been the order of the day since the panel began to sit at the Customary Court venue at Utako, Abuja. Chukwudi Chukwu, a photographer usually recruited by the police to take pictures blew the first whistle much earlier. He said that he had worked for the police for the past seven years. He gave graphic details of how he was able to keep the shots of the murdered people.
"I hid the video camera which I used to record the corpses of the young people killed in my fridge because the police wanted to collect it. The DPO (Divisional Police Officer) of Garki Police Station, CSP Abdulsalam Othman (now on the run) threatened that if I appeared before the police panel and anything happened to me (Chukwudi), he (DPO) should not be blamed.
The photographer also revealed that on June 18, 2005, he was with the police corporal, Anthony Idah who mysteriously died in police custody the succeeding day and just about 24 hours before he was to appear before the Okiro panel.
On July 1, Inspector Suleiman Audu, the officer in charge of the patrol team at the Gimbiya Street appeared before the Goodluck panel. He did not mince words that it was the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Operations, Danjuma Ibrahim who personally shot the victims. He disclosed that he was ordered to write the earlier report which alleged that the slain civilians were robbers. Hear Inspector Audu: "I want to apologise to the whole world, Nigerians and my Igbo brothers about what happened. I have sworn to say the whole truth, and as a Muslim, I want to abide by that. I, therefore, withdraw my earlier statement to the police panel and I will tell the truth.
"At about 01.30 hours (on June 8), the DCP in charge of Operations, Abuja, Mr. Danjuma Ibrahim came to us in his vehicle and stopped by our side. We approached him and he told us to be at alert, and search all vehicles thoroughly.
"As we were discussing, a vehicle was approaching from Gimbiya Street and we flashed our torchlight to stop it but it did not stop. The DC (Deputy Commissioner) used his car to block the vehicle from the right but it swerved to the left. The DC used his car to block again and they hit the back of the DC’s car and engaged the reverse gear and moved back.
"At this point, the DC had come out of his vehicle. As the car was reversing, it hit some flowers... The DC ordered me to fire. I refused. He said again that I should fire at the car. I again refused. He snatched my rifle and started shooting at the vehicle and the vehicle came to a standstill... I approached the vehicle after the shooting and saw six people inside. Four were no longer shaking but two were shouting."
In similar vein, a mobile policeman attached to the Prince and Princess Estate, Abuja, Corporal Hassan Wajiga had also told the Okiro panel that one of the killed traders was alive when he handed him over to a police patrol team. The trader was summarily executed!
Only on Wednesday, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Nimram Nanpon told the Commission of Inquiry in his 45-minute testimony that an earlier one he gave before the police panel were laced with falsehood on the prompting of DCP Danjuma and DPO Othman. Like Audu, he asked for forgiveness from Nigerians and the commission.
And quite like other witnesses before him, he owned up to the fact that the six persons killed were, indeed, not armed robbers like it was claimed earlier.
Now sufficiently are of the involving of their men in the killings, the police authorities also submitted a memorandum to the judicial panel in which the police admitted that "the incident at Gimbiya Street and subsequent events at the Garki Police Station constitute aq clear case of criminal conspiracy and pre-meditated murder... The actions of DCP Ibrahim Danjuma, DPO Abdulsalam Othman and the men involved are reprehensible and unjustifiable."
What we want— families
As the Goodluck-led probe panel digs deeper to get to the root of the avoidable deaths with ASP Nicholas Zakari, Corporal Ezekiel Acheneje, Baba Emmanuel and Sadiq Salami all expected to speak on their distinct roles, the bereaved families insist that all they want is justice, and the approval for the corpses to be exhumed and given befitting burial. Pastor Isaac Chukwu is the father of late Ekene Kennedy Isaac. As for the father, nothing matters more now than being given the body of his dead son to take back home to Achi in Oji River Local Government Area of Enugu State.
"In Igbo custom, we do not bury our own anyhow," Pastor Isaac said. "So, I want the body of my son because I need to give him a befitting burial. My son was not a robber, he was a businessman dealing in auto parts at Durumi Area 1, Garki.
"While I support government’s move to have justice done, I also beg them to release my son’s body so that I can give him the burial that he deserves."
It is the same prayer from Elvis Ozor, another Enugu State indigene from Ezeagu whose brother, Ifeanyi was among the six killed persons. "No amount of punishment to these people (policemen) will bring back the life of my brother. Though we want justice, the immediate concern is the body of Ifeanyi (deceased). Let them give us his corpse so that we can bury him in a proper manner."
The only female among the slain persons, Miss Augustina Aregbu, according to her mother, Monica from Esan Local Government Area of Edo State, was on the verge of entering into the university. Today, the police bullets have put a stop to that ambition.
"I want justice to prevail," said Mrs. Monica Aregbu. "My daughter was living with me in Lagos but came to Abuja to see her friend. It was her friend that called and informed me of her death. No doubt, we’ve been shattered because she was such a child that meant a lot to every member of our family. Though she was only 22, she touched many people in very wonderful ways. Oh, it’s so cruel to kill a young lady who had done nothing in such a manner."
As the commission members are certain to stay glued to their seats while hearing chilling details of how the six people were murdered, questions continue to be asked as to what the recommendations would be, and what the government would do at the end of the day. Beyond that, what is the Police Force doing to arrest Othman who escaped from custody rather than merely declaring him wanted?
On June 8, 2005, five young men in Ifeanyi Ozor, Anthony Nwokike, Paul Ogbonna, Chinedu Meniru, Ekene Isaac and a young school leaver, Miss Augustina Aregbu were cruising home after an outing at a night club. It was in the wee hours.
A police patrol team saw the vehicle approaching from Gimbiya Street in the Federal Capital Territory. The policemen flashed their torchlight but the driver would not stop. A deputy police commissioner in charge of operations, Danjuma Ibrahim used his car to block the oncoming vehicle. It brushed the senior officer’s car and headed on.
And suddenly, all hell was let loose. Ibrahim allegedly opened fire on the occupants. And by the time he allegedly released his finger from the trigger of his AK 47 rifle, four young men in the 406 Peugeot car were motionless and lifeless.
Luck momentarily smiled on Aregbu and one other member of the travelling party. But it was just for some fleeting period. Later, the duo were summarily murdered.
As the news filtered into town, tension began to build. The police had announced that the six persons were suspected armed robbers who were killed in exchanges of gun battle with the policemen on patrol.
But the Igbo traders at the Apo village would not be convinced that their dead colleagues were armed robbers who had been dealt a lethal, mortal blow. Angry and wanting to show their disapproval of the police explanation, the traders took to the street and burnt the Apo Police Station in the process.
Of course, that did not assuage the bitter feelings of Nigerians who wanted the authorities to unmask the brains behind the killings, and the true reasons for the murders.
Enter Okiro’s panel
Following the persistent calls by Nigerians for the probing of the remote and immediate causes of the contentious death of the six persons, the Acting Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Sunday Ehindero set up a police probe panel that was headed by Mr. Mike Okiro, a Deputy Inspector-General.
The panel went into action straight away and summoned some policemen who allegedly played one role or the other in the death of the traders. But the submissions made to the panel by the policemen irked as many people as they did not convince others.
And soon, questions were asked as to the impartiality of senior police officers trying their own men. Ehindero promised that there would be no cover-up, but the families of the slain persons and other Nigerians would not believe him. And did not trust the panel either.
Undeterred, Okiro and his team continued to hold session. But from Inspector Suleiman Audu to ASP Nimram Nanpon and on to other cops fingered, the policemen maintained that those shot were armed robbery suspects.
With the fears being continuously raised that the process might not lead to a transparent result, the yearning for an independent panel of inquiry grew by the day.
New twists, as FG sets up another probe
In apparent respect for the views widely expressed by the people, the Federal Government, on June 24, 2005, announced the disbandment of the Okiro panel and set up a Judicial Commission of Inquiry headed by Justice Olasumbo Goodluck. While inaugurating the body, the Attorney-General and Justice Minister, Akinolu Olujimi had charged them to unearth the immediate and remote causes of the unfortunate deaths.
Shocking revelations and confessions have been the order of the day since the panel began to sit at the Customary Court venue at Utako, Abuja. Chukwudi Chukwu, a photographer usually recruited by the police to take pictures blew the first whistle much earlier. He said that he had worked for the police for the past seven years. He gave graphic details of how he was able to keep the shots of the murdered people.
"I hid the video camera which I used to record the corpses of the young people killed in my fridge because the police wanted to collect it. The DPO (Divisional Police Officer) of Garki Police Station, CSP Abdulsalam Othman (now on the run) threatened that if I appeared before the police panel and anything happened to me (Chukwudi), he (DPO) should not be blamed.
The photographer also revealed that on June 18, 2005, he was with the police corporal, Anthony Idah who mysteriously died in police custody the succeeding day and just about 24 hours before he was to appear before the Okiro panel.
On July 1, Inspector Suleiman Audu, the officer in charge of the patrol team at the Gimbiya Street appeared before the Goodluck panel. He did not mince words that it was the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Operations, Danjuma Ibrahim who personally shot the victims. He disclosed that he was ordered to write the earlier report which alleged that the slain civilians were robbers. Hear Inspector Audu: "I want to apologise to the whole world, Nigerians and my Igbo brothers about what happened. I have sworn to say the whole truth, and as a Muslim, I want to abide by that. I, therefore, withdraw my earlier statement to the police panel and I will tell the truth.
"At about 01.30 hours (on June 8), the DCP in charge of Operations, Abuja, Mr. Danjuma Ibrahim came to us in his vehicle and stopped by our side. We approached him and he told us to be at alert, and search all vehicles thoroughly.
"As we were discussing, a vehicle was approaching from Gimbiya Street and we flashed our torchlight to stop it but it did not stop. The DC (Deputy Commissioner) used his car to block the vehicle from the right but it swerved to the left. The DC used his car to block again and they hit the back of the DC’s car and engaged the reverse gear and moved back.
"At this point, the DC had come out of his vehicle. As the car was reversing, it hit some flowers... The DC ordered me to fire. I refused. He said again that I should fire at the car. I again refused. He snatched my rifle and started shooting at the vehicle and the vehicle came to a standstill... I approached the vehicle after the shooting and saw six people inside. Four were no longer shaking but two were shouting."
In similar vein, a mobile policeman attached to the Prince and Princess Estate, Abuja, Corporal Hassan Wajiga had also told the Okiro panel that one of the killed traders was alive when he handed him over to a police patrol team. The trader was summarily executed!
Only on Wednesday, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Nimram Nanpon told the Commission of Inquiry in his 45-minute testimony that an earlier one he gave before the police panel were laced with falsehood on the prompting of DCP Danjuma and DPO Othman. Like Audu, he asked for forgiveness from Nigerians and the commission.
And quite like other witnesses before him, he owned up to the fact that the six persons killed were, indeed, not armed robbers like it was claimed earlier.
Now sufficiently are of the involving of their men in the killings, the police authorities also submitted a memorandum to the judicial panel in which the police admitted that "the incident at Gimbiya Street and subsequent events at the Garki Police Station constitute aq clear case of criminal conspiracy and pre-meditated murder... The actions of DCP Ibrahim Danjuma, DPO Abdulsalam Othman and the men involved are reprehensible and unjustifiable."
What we want— families
As the Goodluck-led probe panel digs deeper to get to the root of the avoidable deaths with ASP Nicholas Zakari, Corporal Ezekiel Acheneje, Baba Emmanuel and Sadiq Salami all expected to speak on their distinct roles, the bereaved families insist that all they want is justice, and the approval for the corpses to be exhumed and given befitting burial. Pastor Isaac Chukwu is the father of late Ekene Kennedy Isaac. As for the father, nothing matters more now than being given the body of his dead son to take back home to Achi in Oji River Local Government Area of Enugu State.
"In Igbo custom, we do not bury our own anyhow," Pastor Isaac said. "So, I want the body of my son because I need to give him a befitting burial. My son was not a robber, he was a businessman dealing in auto parts at Durumi Area 1, Garki.
"While I support government’s move to have justice done, I also beg them to release my son’s body so that I can give him the burial that he deserves."
It is the same prayer from Elvis Ozor, another Enugu State indigene from Ezeagu whose brother, Ifeanyi was among the six killed persons. "No amount of punishment to these people (policemen) will bring back the life of my brother. Though we want justice, the immediate concern is the body of Ifeanyi (deceased). Let them give us his corpse so that we can bury him in a proper manner."
The only female among the slain persons, Miss Augustina Aregbu, according to her mother, Monica from Esan Local Government Area of Edo State, was on the verge of entering into the university. Today, the police bullets have put a stop to that ambition.
"I want justice to prevail," said Mrs. Monica Aregbu. "My daughter was living with me in Lagos but came to Abuja to see her friend. It was her friend that called and informed me of her death. No doubt, we’ve been shattered because she was such a child that meant a lot to every member of our family. Though she was only 22, she touched many people in very wonderful ways. Oh, it’s so cruel to kill a young lady who had done nothing in such a manner."
As the commission members are certain to stay glued to their seats while hearing chilling details of how the six people were murdered, questions continue to be asked as to what the recommendations would be, and what the government would do at the end of the day. Beyond that, what is the Police Force doing to arrest Othman who escaped from custody rather than merely declaring him wanted?
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