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Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), has called on the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Gwabin Musa and the Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja to immediately stop their troops from violating the rights on innocent residents of Aba in Abia State in revenge of the killing of five soldiers in the state recently.
The civil rights advocacy group made the call, while reacting to reports that soldiers were allegedly carrying out reprisal attacks over the killing of their colleagues at Obikabia Junction, Ogbor Hill, Aba, on Thursday, 30th May.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelIn a statement signed by HURIWA National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, the group asked the military to operate according to the rules of engagement.
The group urged the army to deploy lawful means in fishing out the criminals responsible for the attack and avoid making innocent residents suffer what they did not do.
“The Army must deploy lawful means to track down the terrorists responsible for the dastardly crime of mass murders of soldiers and the innocent Aba residents must not suffer as a result of an act of terror they played no role in unleashing,” HURIWA stated.
Continuing, it said: “The continuous violations of the fundamental human rights of the citizens are unconstitutional and therefore absolutely condemned.
“It is beyond logic to explain the fact that since the terrorists attacked the military checkpoint at the junction, killing the soldiers and burning two patrol vans as well as their checkpoint, the soldiers, angered by the attack, reportedly stormed Aba and its environs, assaulting and arresting motorists and residents.”
HURIWA commended the Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, for visiting the Army and bereaved families and importantly, the decision to institute scholarships up to university level for the children of these fallen heroes.
The group equally hailed Governor Otti for announcing that the state government will reward any person with useful intelligence that could lead to the capture of these terrorists.
HURIWA urged the Army to reciprocate the humane gestures by ensuring that innocent Aba residents are not punished collectively. “Aba city must not become an occupied military territory for this will destroy trades and commerce worth several billions and put over four million residents out of work. Residents should be protected from terrorists and not attacked by soldiers who are maintained by the taxpayers,” it stated.
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HURIWA citing media reports and credible eyewitnesses, stated that cases of alleged humiliation of passengers by soldiers who barricaded the Aro Ngwa, Umuikaa, Isiala Ngwa and Ntigha Junctions along the Aba – Umuahia section of the Enugu – Port Harcourt Expressway, constituted an egregious and grave violations of the constitutionally guaranteed fundamental freedoms which must on no account be abridged unlawfully.
The civil rights group said it gathered that the humiliation of passengers by soldiers in Aba had stopped, but there were cases where suspected persons were arrested while other passengers were allowed to continue their journey.
“We condemn the killing of the five soldiers but the Army should ensure that innocent motorists should not be made to suffer for what they didn’t know.”
HURIWA said in as much as it considers the attack and the gruesome murders of soldiers in the junction near Aba City as a terrorist act, it is unlawful for soldiers to create a sense of panic on a mass scale and engage in a campaign of harassment and intimidation of innocent people to an extent that many people afraid of been killed by soldiers, have left Aba to save their precious lives.
It also stated that some residents have also alleged cases of missing persons following raids of their homes by soldiers. “Military must use lawful means to conduct their investigation and before any arrests, the arresting security forces must have warrants of arrests legally authorised by a court of law. We condemn all illegal, unilateral, arbitrary arrests of Aba residents by the soldiers.
HURIWA therefore asked the military chiefs to call their operatives to order so they stop creating unnecessary tensions amongst the civil populace who are not connected to the terrorists who attacked the soldiers.
“The truth is that those who instigated this terror attack on soldiers are not working for the millions of law-abiding residents of Aba and therefore these innocent people must be spared of any illegal action by soldiers because Nigeria is a Country governed by law and not by the whims and caprices of trigger happy operatives.
“The Nigerian Army, the armed security services should use intelligence gathered from amongst the intelligence department and human intelligence from the people, to trace, arrest, and ensure that those who killed the soldiers who were on peace keeping mission in Aba, are prosecuted and punished. “Creating fears and panic on the minds of the populace wouldn’t let the security forces win the hearts and minds of the people. The Nigerian Army needs to win the hearts and minds of the people of South East so all manifestations of threats against the security and stability of the Igbo states would be defeated and decisively crush,” the group further stated.
