ENDSARS PANEL RECOMMENDS #189 MILLION NAIRA COMPENSATION TO VICTIMS OF POLICE BRUTALITY IN EBONYI

Reporter : AMECHI ODO

The #EndSARS Judicial Panel of Inquiry set up in Ebonyi State has recommended the payment of about 189 million Naira as compensation to victims whose cases were determined. The Chairman of the Panel, Justice Alloy Nwankwo, stated this   during the presentation of their report to Ebonyi State Government at Government House Abakaliki.

The Judicial Panel of Inquiry into complaints of extra judicial killings and human rights violations by members of the scrapped Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) and other security agencies was inaugurated on October 20, 2020 following #EndSARS protests across the country. The panel’s terms of reference includes to receive and investigate complaints of police brutality, human rights violations and to recommend remedial measures where appropriate.

The Chairman of the Panel, Justice Alloy Nwankwo (retired) explained that seventy-one petitions were submitted to the Panel of which fifty-one were determined while twenty were either struck out or withdrawn for lack of diligent prosecution.

He called for the full implementation of the Panel’s recommendations, including the payment of over 189 million Naira to assuage the feelings of those who lost their loved ones and bring relief to those who were victims of brutality.

Governor David Umahi commended the Panel members for their diligence in handling the task assigned to them and promised that the state government would look into their  recommendations. The State Government also received a report from a visitation Panel set up to look into the administrative challenges facing Ebonyi State University, headed by Professor Celine Oko.