April Polls violence: Panel demands adequate security for members

Posted by admin Elections 2011 Thursday, May 12th, 2011

THE Presidential Commission of Inquiry into the election violence in Akwa Ibom State and the civil unrest in parts of North which was inaugurated by President Goodluck Jonathan has asked for adequate security for its members to enable them carry out their assignment.

The Chairman of the Panel, Sheikh Ahmed Lemu, called for the protection of the 22-man panel just as he warned that the panel would not entertain any interference from any quarter during the assignment.

The panel is likely to submit its report on June 26th when the six weeks assignment would be completed.

The President said that those behind the pre and post elections violence in the country were out to truncate the nation’s march towards entrenching a stable democratic culture in Nigeria, and urged the panel to fish out all those involved for punishment.

President Goodluck Jonathan (fourth right); Vice President Namadi Sambo (fifth right); Chairman of the 2011 Elections Investigations Panel, Sheikh Ahmed Lemu (third right); with other members of the Panel shortly after its inauguration at the State House, Abuja, yesterday.

Speaking on behalf of the committee, Lemu assured the nation of the panel’s resolve to do justice to the assignment, saying that some of them after reaching the age of 82 have already collected their “boarding pass” to their last destination on earth (heaven) and so have nothing to fear in discharging their responsibility.

The Islamic scholar also described as saddening, the unrest which led to the death of 10 members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

“I have two substantive requests to make on behalf of the members and that is effective security in view of the scepticism of some political parties and assumption of witch-hunting. Consequently I request Mr. President again for effective measures to forestall interference by anybody from any quarters. For every member has integrity in the eyes of God and man to protect.

“Some of us like myself have already collected their respective boarding passes at the age of 82, sitting in the departure lounge awaiting for the call to board the plane with the hope of their destination to be at Al-jan nat Insha Allah,” he said.

Lemu also expressed the panel dismay over the wanton killing and destruction of properties by fellow Nigerians, especially when the said election was accepted by many as free and fair.

“Once again, the Nigerian nation is confronted with the series of tragic and traumatic events occasioning great distress to many families in different parts of the country. These acts of violence, wanton carnage and mindless destruction of property are all the more disheartening because they were acts inflicted upon the nation by none other than Nigerians”, he said.

“One is further saddened by the fact that the acts of electoral violence which this panel is constituted to investigate ironically occurred around general elections widely acclaimed by local and international electoral observers and monitors of being the freest and most transparent in the annals of our national history,” he further added.

The Islamic Scholar described the assignment as “a great honour accorded us by this appointment as well as for the unique opportunity for us to be of service to our dear fatherland at this time of great national distress and need.

“We are quiet appreciative of the great responsibility, the current circumstances imposed on the federal government particularly in terms of taking adequate steps to determine and inform the citizenry as well as our international development partners of how this event came about and where those whose culpability is proven therein to stand vis-à-vis our laws.

According to him, “we have no illusions as to the enormity of our task as well as our own individual and collective responsibility to our conscience and our fatherland in that regard. I am particularly reassuring Mr. President by virtue of the array of distinguished personalities of well established records of diligent service and patriotic devotion to the course of our national unity, peaceful coexistence and social economic progress that have been selected to serve with me on this panel, that we shall apply ourselves to the task at hand with all the forthrightness equity and fairness it deserves.

“I wish further to assure your Excellency on behalf of all my colleagues that our findings and recommendations in the course of this assignment diligently applied will go a long way in eradicating this seemingly intractable acts of self-inflicted violence”, he said.

The Presidential Panel terms of reference include: To investigate the immediate and remote cause(s) of the pre-election violence in Akwa Ibom State as well as the tide of unrest in some States of the Federation following the Presidential election and make appropriate recommendations on how to prevent future occurrence; To ascertain the number of persons who lost their lives or sustained injuries during the violence; To identify the spread and extent of loss and damage to means of livelihood and assess the cost of damage to personal and public properties and places of worship and make appropriate recommendations; To investigate the sources of weapons used in the unrest and recommend how to stem the tide of illegal flow of such weapons to the country; and to examine any other matter incidental or relevant to the unrest and advise Government as appropriate.

President Jonathan in his remark said it was unimaginable to believe that an election that was adjudged one of the freest and most credible in the history of Nigeria was preceded with such degree of violence.

He said “given this backdrop, it is difficult to comprehend the sped of unprecedented violence that griped some parts of the federation just after the announcement of the results of the presidential election. This unfortunate development was no doubt meant to mar what ought to have been a celebration of the progressive match of our democratic experience. The unimaginable orgy of violence that followed resulted in the deaths of scores of Nigerians while personal and public properties worth millions of naira were destroyed”.

President Jonathan stated that “it is sadly ironical that at a time one should be celebrating the landmark democratic achievement of the nationally and internationally acclaimed 2011 elections, we are faced with the task of confronting the challenge posed by the unprecedented violence which flared up in parts of the country”.

He said “starting with cases of pre-election violence in some states, these reprehensible acts later escalated to a conflagration in some other parts of the country shortly after the announcement of the results of the presidential elections”.

Jonathan noted that cognizance of his obligation as the nation’s president to defend the constitution and protect the right of all citizens to freely express their democratic choice anywhere in this country, “I took the requisite steps to check the unacceptable situation to authorize the security services to use all lawful means including justifiable force to bring to an immediate end to any acts of violence against innocent citizens”.

President Jonathan stated that “in order to prevent a reoccurrence of such horrific acts which strike at the heart of our nation, government has decided to constitute a panel to investigate the immediate and remote causes of the acts of pre and post election violence in parts of our dear nation”.

While expressing the Federal Government’s “untainted support” for the panel, he said he has no doubt whatsoever that the panel members “will bring a synergy of their collective experience and demonstrable diligence to bear on this crucial national assignment. It is my expectation that they will conclude their assignment and submit their reports within six weeks”.

Other members of the panel include Justice Samson Uwaifo, the Vice Chairman and Mr. F. F. Ogunshakin, as Secretary, former Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Mrs. Lateefat Okunnu, immediate past Chairman of Punch Newspaper, Chief Ajibola Ogunsola, Rev. Father Idowu Feron, Alhaji Muhammadu Danmadami, M. B. Wali Esq., Dr. (Mrs.) Timiebi A. Koripamo-Agary, Comrade Peter Esele, Alhaji Muhammed Ibrahim, Prof. Femi Odekunle, Amb. Ralph Uwuche, Alhaji Bukar Usman, Sheikh Adam Idoko, Major General Mohammed Said (Rtd.), Barrister P.C. Okorie, Arc. Shamsuna Ahmed, Major General L. P. Ngubane, Alhaji sani Maikudi, Rear Admiral Itunu Hotonu, and a Serving member of NYSC, Idowu Damilola Ogungbemi.

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Posted by admin on May 12 2011. Filed under Elections 2011. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry