Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has called for the prosecution of those responsible for the deaths of 85 people in separate incidents in Niger and Ondo states, saying the tragedies expose serious failures in the handling of suspects and the regulation of potentially poisonous alcoholic and herbal concoctions.
Falana urged the Attorneys-General of Niger and Ondo states to ensure the speedy investigation and prosecution of persons found culpable in the deaths of 37 suspects in the custody of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps and 48 people who died following a mass illness outbreak linked to suspected locally prepared alcoholic and herbal concoctions.
In a statement, Falana called on the Attorney-General of Niger State, Nasiru Mu’azu, to direct a thorough investigation by the state Police Command into the death of the 37 suspects.
The suspects were arrested by the NSCDC over alleged illegal mining in a village near Borgu, Niger State.
According to Falana, they were detained at an NSCDC facility but were found dead two days after their arrest, amid reports that overcrowding and poor ventilation may have contributed to the deaths.
The NSCDC spokesperson, Babawale Afolabi, confirmed that more than 50 people had been arrested, although they had yet to be charged because profiling and documentation were still ongoing.
Falana said the Niger State Ministry of Justice should prosecute any person found to have contributed to the deaths.
He described the incident as a grim reminder of the death of 50 criminal suspects who suffocated inside a police transport van, popularly known as a “Black Maria”, at the premises of the Tinubu Magistrates’ Court in Lagos in 1980.
According to him, the continued detention of suspects in overcrowded and poorly ventilated cells showed that the underlying problem had persisted for decades.
Falana alleged that poor suspects were routinely subjected to degrading detention conditions, while wealthy suspects were sometimes kept in offices or other less congested areas of police stations and correctional facilities.
“The official outrage is indeed hypocritical because the death of suspects in dehumanising incarceration in police stations and other detention facilities in the country is a regular phenomenon,” he said.
He urged governments and law-enforcement agencies to ensure that detention facilities complied with the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, popularly known as the Nelson Mandela Rules.
48 die in Ondo
In a related development, Falana urged the Attorney-General of Ondo State, Dr Olukayode Ajulo, SAN, to ensure the prosecution of persons implicated in the deaths arising from the mass illness outbreak in parts of the state.
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control had confirmed 48 deaths out of 182 reported cases linked to the consumption of suspected locally prepared alcoholic and herbal concoctions.
NAFDAC also reported that five victims had become totally blind, while two others suffered partial blindness after consuming the suspected beverages.
The affected communities, according to the agency, include New Town, Odole, Okele, Orita Odigbo, Araromi-Obu and Oniparaga.
It said the highest number of cases was recorded in Odigbo Town and Araromi-Obu, both in Odigbo Local Government Area, adding that the outbreak had also spread to Irele Local Government Area.
NAFDAC said the figures remained subject to ongoing verification.
Falana noted that 15 people had been arrested in connection with the production, sale and distribution of the suspected poisonous beverages.
He urged the Ondo State Attorney-General to ensure that the suspects were prosecuted if investigations established their culpability.
Falana said the two incidents should prompt the authorities to strengthen safeguards against the inhumane treatment of detainees and the circulation of dangerous substances capable of causing mass deaths.
Dear readers, we really need your support to keep on serving you with authoritative, truthful, and juicy stories everyday. For your support, please reach out to the editor @gavelinternational66@gmail.com