Apo Killing: Commission Slams Security Agencies, Orders N135m For Victims

The National Human Rights Commission on Monday indicted Nigeria's security agencies for gross violation of human rights of Nigerian citizens killed by security operatives last September at an uncompleted building at Apo, within the Gudu District of the Abuja metropolis.

In its final report following the completion of investigations in the matter, the Commission noted that although there is on going non-international armed conflict in Nigeria in view of the nation's battle against terrorism and insurgency, but that the security agencies were not in possession of any credible evidence showing that the deceased victims or the injured ones were in fact members of Boko Haram or combatants. 

The Rights Commission also faulted the claims of the security agencies that they acted in self defense at the fatal operation where eight persons were shot dead with eleven others seriously wounded.

"Regarding the proportionality of lethal force used by the security agents, the Commission found that the testimonies alleging self-defence by the security agents were inconsistent and therefore, the security agents could not be found to have acted in self-defence or with the appropriate amount of care in preventing unnecessary deaths"

The Commission in its conclusion noted that in specific circumstances of the security operation, that the killings were unlawful violations of the right to life of the deceased victims and that survivors who sustained injuries in the encounter similarly suffered non-lethal violations of their rights to life, physical integrity and livelihood and ordered the security agencies made of SSS, the Nigerian Army and Police, to pay the sum of ten million Naira as compensation for of each of the deceased and five million Naira for each of the injured survivors.

Additionally, the Commission called on security agencies to undertake a review and harmonisation of the Rules of Engagement governing their operations to bring them into compliance with the applicable rules of international humanitarian law governing non-international armed conflicts and directed the security agencies to file a certified text of the harmonized and updated Rules of Engagement with the Secretariat of the National Human Rights Commission within two months.

On the 18th of September last year, the Directorate of States Services, DSS, had claimed that it received intelligence that there was to be an attack on unspecified targets in Abuja and that it swiftly acted on this intelligence and arrested three persons, who, under interrogation, according to the SSS, disclosed that they had a leader in Abuja, called Suleiman (also known as “R’Kelly”) as the arrowhead of the planned terror attacks under the auspices of the Jama'atu ahlus sunnah lid da'awati wal jihad JALISWAJ, popularly known as Boko Haram and that they could identify and lead the security services to him. One of the detainees was also said to have confessed that the group had weapons that were buried in the Cemetery in Apo.

 

A joint security operation was thereafter conducted by the SSS with the assistance of the Nigerian Army without any reconnaissance or surveillance done in advance of the operation. 

"Shortly after midnight, the security agents allegedly arrived at the cemetery in Gudu to commence digging with two of their informants, but were unable to recover any weapons. The informants then led the agents to an uncompleted residential building where their alleged leader, Suleiman R’Kelly resided. The security agents were allegedly met with fire, which they returned. The shooting lasted for the better part of over thirty minutes. It was very dark when the incident happened. There was no light in the building. There were over 100 persons sleeping on the floors of the various levels and rooms in the two adjoining blocks of the un-completed building. The occupants were nearly all male and mostly artisans  - Taxi drivers, shoe makers, and Keke NAPEP drivers” read part of the final report.

Seven men died during the operation from gunshot-related wounds; another died in hospital for bullet injuries sustained during the operation, and eleven other men were hospitalized from injuries sustained in the encounter; all males between the ages of 18 and 25 years. Additionally, four other persons were detained and others, who were released from custody, were told not to return to the Federal Capital Territory. No security agents were injured. The alleged leader of the terrorist cell, Mr. Suleiman was not apprehended and no arms were recovered from the cemetry while security man, Mr. Joseph, who was engaged by the owner of the premises in which the fatal encounter with the security agencies took place, still cannot be accounted for. Each of the squatters claimed they paid him two hundred Naira (N200) weekly to sleep there and none of the parties interviewed by the Commission during its investigation knew Mr. Joseph’s background, his next of kin, nor his whereabouts after the incident occurred. One week prior to the killings, the owner of the uncompleted premises asked Mr. Joseph to evict all persons living there.

The Commission also noted in reference to allegations that some of those released after the incident had been told not to return to the Federal Capital Territory, that such order amounts to administrative exclusion or internal banishment which are not backed by law and cannot be imposed on any Nigerian citizen and bars security agencies from such practice.

 

The representative of the Nigerian Army at the event, G.O Anyalemechi, however denied any culpability by the Nigerian Army and stated that the report did not say that the Nigerian Army bullets were responsible for the death of the victims of that security operation and noted that only a thorough forensic inquiry can determine which security outfit's bullets were responsible for the death.

"The report did not say that Nigerian Army bullets killed them. Only a forensic report can determine that"