A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, on Monday called on the Federal Government to set up a panel of inquiry to investigate the killing of MASSOB/IPOB members as well as scores of Shiites who were allegedly killed by the military and the police.
Falana made the call while delivering a paper at the 2016 Law Week of the Jos branch of the Nigeria Bar Association, entitled:” War Against Corruption-Issues and Challenges Confronting the Judiciary.”
He said, “In view of the admission of the Nigerian Army that it killed 5 protesters instead of the 150 alleged by Amnesty International, we are compelling the federal government to setup a pane ofl inquiry to investigate the killing of MASSOB/IPOB members as well as scores of the Shiites who have been killed by the Army and the police.
“It is curious to note that neither the national leadership of NBA nor any of its 109 branches has deemed it fit to condemn the crimes against humanity committed by the army and the worsening human rights record of the federal government,”,he lamented.
“But the NBA reacted angrily to the nocturnal raid of homes of seven judges who were arrested for alleged corrupt practices last month by operatives of the State Security Service (SSS).
He maintained that, “While not supporting the harassment of judges I did not hesitate in condemning the NBA for engaging in hypocrisy by limiting the defence of human rights to senior members of the legal profession.
“No doubt, there are bad eggs in the judiciary but we must always resist the temptation to described the entire Nigerian judiciary as a corrupt institution.
“Since we have very competent and incorruptible judges our duty is to identify and expose the incompetent ones”, he stressed.
Declaring the occasion opened, Governor Simon Lalong, said “The theme of this year 2016 legal week; ‘War Against Corruption-Issues and Challenges Confronting the Judiciary’, is indeed apt and timely.
“The interesting thing is that the focus of all these conferences, is the role of lawyers in the anti-corruption crusade.
The Governor reiterated that corruption is a “global terror” and the world is at war against it.
Lalong assured that his administration will continue to partner with the NBA and other professional bodies, in ensuring that it achieves sustainable development in the state.
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