The Presidency has assured that the Federal Government will address the areas that are associated with the White Paper report of the recently submitted Lagos Judicial Panel on Inquiry on Police Brutality and other related matters, as the submission date gets closer.
This is as the controversy that has trailed the contents in the leaked report has continued unabated with divergent views being expressed by different stakeholders.
This was made known by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, while appearing on a Channels Television Breakfast Programme, Sunrise Daily, which was monitored by Nairametrics.
What the Presidential media aide is saying
Adesina, while explaining the steps that the Federal Government intends to take in handling the findings of the Lagos Judicial Panel, which was also a topic of discussion when the US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, visited Nigeria, said they will wait till submission of the reports from the states before they address the areas of concern.
He said, “What would happen is that when the states come up with pronouncements on that panel report, that would then be of interest to the Federal Government.
“Definitely, when the reports come out the ones that are Federal in nature will be considered. There are some things that would be Federal in nature, the Federal Government would tackle that but things that are state in nature, the state government will handle.
“There is an Attorney General of the Federation who will advise and the needful would be done.’’
When asked what the Federal Government was doing with the Judicial Panel report that had been submitted by some states, Adesina said he is not aware if some states that have completed their inquiry have so far submitted their reports to the Federal Government.
He said, “I am not quite sure of that, but I know that areas that would affect the Federal Government will be looked into by the Federal Government.”
Speaking on the idea behind the setting up of the probe panel, Mr Adesina said that the Federal Government did not give a directive for their set-up but it was just a suggestion to the state government.
“It couldn’t have been a directive because the Federal Government doesn’t have the power. It was just an idea.’’
What you should know
- Recall that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had set up the Lagos State Judicial Panel of Inquiry to look into allegations of human rights abuses levelled against the police and also determine the cause of coordinated attacks on Lagos, noting that the panel’s final report would be fully implemented.
- The Panel submitted its final report with a total compensation of about N410.2 million to 70 petitioners.
- A leaked version of the report, the Judicial Panel allegedly indicted the Nigerian Army for shooting, injuring and killing unarmed helpless and defenceless protesters, without provocation or justification, while they were waving the Nigerian Flag and singing the National Anthem.
- The panel said that the manner of assault and killing could in context be described as a massacre adding that the conduct of the Nigerian Army was exacerbated by its refusal to allow ambulances to render medical assistance to victims who required such assistance.
- The Lagos State Government has called for restraints from citizens with their reactions over the recently submitted report of the Judicial Panel following the various reactions that have trailed the submission of the report.