Police Fault Amnesty’s Report on  Protest Fatalities

Linus Aleke in Abuja

The Nigeria Police yesterday faulted an Amnesty International report that alleged that state forces including the police killed unarmed protesters during the #EndBadGovernance protest in northern Nigeria, earlier in the year.

Amnesty International in November 2024 had released a report titled: “Bloody August: Nigeria Government’s Violent Crackdown on #EndBadGovernance Protests,” where several allegations were made against the Nigeria Police, including the killing of at least 24 persons in six northern states during the protests.
A statement by Force spokesperson, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, said the claims made by Amnesty International in the report were at variance with the records available to the Nigeria Police.

“All recorded incidents of violence during the protests were documented by the police in all 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).  These records are available at both the Department of Operations and the Department of Research and Planning of the Nigeria Police Force.
“It is, therefore, surprising to see in Amnesty International’s report such unfounded claims that contradicted what was actually recorded during the protests. Notwithstanding, the Inspector General of Police, in response to the allegations contained in the report, directed a comprehensive and independent investigation into these claims.

“To this end, a special investigation panel was immediately constituted and given a deadline to submit its findings. The IGP also mandated Commissioners of Police in the states mentioned in the report to verify the allegations as they pertain to their states and to submit additional reports on the incidents,” the police statement said.
Following the directives, Adejobi said the Commissioners of Police in the affected states conducted extensive inquiries in their localities and submitted their findings to the Inspector General of Police.

He added that copies of these findings were sent to the special investigation panel, stressing that members of the panel visited the affected states and areas mentioned in the report, compiling their findings in a comprehensive document submitted to the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun.
This report, he said, formed the briefing, where they will present a detailed investigation report addressing the wide-ranging allegations made against the police in Amnesty International’s report.

Perforating the report, the police said that: “In Borno State, it was established that the protesters were violent, engaging in widespread looting, pillaging, and wanton destruction of public and private property.
“For example, the Skills Acquisition Centre of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) was looted and vandalised. The warehouse of the World Food Programme, located on Baga/Maimalari Barracks Road, Maiduguri, was also looted, with several items belonging to the international organization destroyed and stolen by some of the protesters.

“Of particular interest is the reported death of three fuel attendants at A.A Kime Filling Station—Nasiru Mustapha (26), Amodu Garba Maina (24), and Momodi Hassan. Amnesty International claimed on pages 22 and 25 of its report that these three individuals died when a hand grenade was thrown into the filling station by a convoy of police vehicles.
“These allegations are not only false and misleading but are also a clear attempt to incite the general public against the police and tarnish the image of the Nigeria Police Force in the eyes of the international community”.

For the record, he said the Nigeria Police does not possess or utilise explosive hand grenades in its operations. Adejobi said explosive hand grenades have never been purchased, issued, or utilised by the Nigeria Police since its establishment as a law enforcement agency.

“How and where Amnesty International obtained such information can only be speculated upon by mischievous minds.

“To set the record straight, the trio of Nasiru Mustapha, Amodu Garba Maina, and Momodu Hassan, all staff of Kime and Sons Filling Station, were killed by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) fabricated with a safety-free mechanism and planted at the filling station on Baga Road, Maiduguri—not at Bolori Junction as Amnesty International claimed.

“Furthermore, these three young men were not protesting when they met their untimely deaths. In fact, they did not participate in the protests and were believed to have been killed for choosing to ignore the protests and continue with their lawful business.

“ It should also be noted that the Nigeria Police, based on credible intelligence, had warned ahead of the protests of terror elements planning to infiltrate the demonstrations,” the police added.