UN Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed has stated what the UN is doing about the #EndSARS protests and police reforms in Nigeria. She said the UN is aware of the protests and will support the bridge-building reforms and ensure the Federal Government’s interests are genuine.
Mohammed disclosed this on Tuesday in an interview with Channels Television.
Mohammed said that the UN is working on 3 major areas including transparency in the reform processes, support of setting panels with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), and continuing engagement between the youth and the FG to actualization.
“What is the UN doing about that? We have been asked to provide support in three particular areas – first to make sure that these processes themselves can be stood up and can be ones that everyone is engaging in, and that can see the test of time over the next months and perhaps, years because this is a transformation that is going to take time,” she said.
She added that the UN will support the Human Rights Commission in setting panels to investigate issues of police brutality in Nigeria and also develop solutions.
“The UN support to the government is to make sure that we can put in those platforms, we can continue to support the bridge-building and the police reforms, the other governance reforms that have to be put in place to make this a reality in the short and in the long time,” she said.
Amina Mohammed urged the need for an endgame to the protests, ensuring that the engagement between both parties continue and the Youth are also carried along till the final phase.
“I think that was a good thing. I certainly was proud of young people that I knew were part of this but very quickly, we have to understand that when you go into a protest and let’s remember we were all young and activists at one time that you have to have an endgame.
“And in this particular case, there were demands made of government and the youths succeeded, because in the shortest possible time, the government responded to say we are going to take care of these first issues that you have raised and many more that were raised thereafter.
“That came to be, means that there is an engagement and that engagement needs to continue, it needs to continue by young people making sure they are there and pushing for those demands that they set out to actualize.
“Government has to ensure that it has processes in place that are genuine, that we have confidence-building measures, because trust is broken on both sides, and that we can move forward from the times of the protest,” she said.
What you should know
Nairametrics reported this week that President Muhammadu Buhari attended a State House meeting with the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, where he said it is in the interest of Nigerian youths to maintain peace.
God bless #UN……… As you remember ??….. But don’t give #bubu the money?…… Pls do it for us by yourself ???