Ezu River: Reps, NHRC Demand Probe Into Anambra Mystery Corpses
The House of Representatives and the National Human Rights Commission on Tuesday called on security agencies to unravel the mystery surrounding the dumping of dead bodies in the Ezu River in Anambra State by unknown persons.
The House passed a resolution on Tuesday asking its Committee on Police Affairs to investigate the incident.
The resolution followed a motion by a member representing Awka-North/Awka-South Federal Constituency, Mr. Chukwuemeke Nwogbo.
Also on Tuesday, the National Human Rights Commission insisted that the perpetrators of the dastardly act must be arrested and brought to justice.
A statement by the Director, Public Affairs and Communications Department of the commission, Muhammad Nasir Ladan, said the Executive Secretary, Prof. Bem Angwe, made the call while reacting to the incident.
Angwe, in the statement, said, “The right to life remains the mother of all rights and therefore must be recognised and observed by all members of the society.”
He explained that the state coordinators of the commission’s offices in Awka and Enugu had been directed to carry out a thorough investigation of the incident and report back to Abuja urgently.
Angwe said the corpses should be properly examined through an autopsy to provide more information on the killings.
Also, the International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law called on the Inspector-Generalof Police, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar, to thoroughly investigate the incident.
In a statement made available to our correspondent in Awka on Tuesday, Intersociety said it strongly suspected the Anambra State Anti-Robbery Squad to be responsible for the death and dumping of the corpses in the river.
It said,“There is no known intra and inter communal violence or conflict in the area, it is most likely that the corpses are victims of extra-judicial killings by SARS (Special Anti Robbery Squad) operatives in Anambra State.”
The organisation also said it was also suspecting the police because of the failure of the force to bring to trial the hundreds of people it had arrested for armed robbery, kidnapping and other violent crimes in the state after being paraded publicly.
The Intersociety statement was signed by the Chairman of its board of trustees, Mr. Emeka Umeagbalasi, and the Head of its information desk, Mr. Justus Ijeoma.
But the Anambra State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Emeka Chukwuemeka, dismissed the claims of the civic rights organisation as “frivolous and hasty.”
He said it was wrong for anybody to jump into a conclusion when the forensic tests on the corpses had not been concluded.
Source: Legit.ng
