Human rights advocacy group, One Love Foundation, has filed a suit against the Nigerian Government before the ECOWAS Court over the recent killing of a Lagos State street hawker at Ojota on Saturday, 3rd July, 2021.
The 14-year-old yoghurt hawker, simply identified as Jumoke, was allegedly killed by bullets reportedly fired by a security operative, who was dispersing Yoruba Nation agitators at Ojota, Lagos State.
Viral images on social media show that bullets ripped open the victim’s stomach.
Jumoke was reportedly displaying drinks at a shop when the stray bullet hit her.
The applicant who filed this suit, Chief Patrick Osagie Eholor is also by this suit, requesting the ECOWAS Court to put to halt the continuous intimidation, suppression, harassment, killing, sometimes shooting of peaceful protesters, who in pursuit of their fundamental rights to peaceful protest are routinely killed, arrested and locked up by different security agencies all over Nigeria by the different Nigeria state security agencies.
The details of the case, which was filed today and copies made available to newsmen centred on the legality of the clampdown, sometimes banning by the federal government of Nigeria through the Nigeria Police Force, DSS, and other security agencies.
Speaking on this case, the legal representative of One Love Foundation, Ihensekhien Samuel Jnr, maintained and stated that peaceful protest is not and can never be a crime in Nigeria and protest in Nigeria is protected by the provisions of Nigeria constitution, which guarantees the rights to freedom of expression and information, and also Articles 8 and 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and also Articles 7, 9 & 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 1976, which all treaty, laws Nigeria is signatory to.
So he wonders why protest is being demonize and sometimes criminalize by state actors in Nigeria. He also said with the recent clamp down on Omoleye Sowore during a protest at Unity Fountain in Abuja, One Love Foundation, did write vide an open letter to the Nigeria state, Nigeria Police Force, on the need to maintain fairness and protect lawful protesters during protest, that uptil now, no official communication, nor response to the group demands and letter, wherein the above has embolden the need, why One Love Foundation has now approached the ECOWAS Court to determine in finality, the illegality of continuous clampdown on peaceful protesters by Nigeria security agencies and Nigeria state actors in Nigeria, he concluded.
