Prominent Civil Rights Advocacy Group:- HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has strongly condemned the reported extralegal killings of about seven house owners in Graceland neighborhood near the federal Aviation School, Samaru Zaria on the instructions of President Muhammadu Buhari and executed by the Kaduna State government with impunity and reckless primitive tendencies.
The Rights group in a media statement by the National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and the National Director of Media Miss Zainab Yusuf, HURIWA said Kaduna state government has committed gross crimes against humanity by using crude force employed by the Nigerian Army to displace genuine or even imagined house owners and thereby killing seven citizens unlawfully.
“We have it on good authority that so far, seven persons have been killed by soldiers who escorted the demolition squad from the Kaduna State government which claimed that the exercise was directed by President Muhammadu Buhari to enable the Aviation college to expand her training facilities within their vicinity. We wonder on which of the legal authority the President of Nigeria Under the Land Use Act of 1978 to order the revocation of property rights of citizens some of whom are citizens that have worked tirelessly to build the economy of Kaduna State”.
“Our attention was called to the ordeals of an octogenarian whose house was crudely demolished in Zaria today’s morning even as he was shoved aside even after pleading with the Kaduna State government that the house was all he has in this life. He was physically, psychologically and emotionally tortured and his property demolished without consideration for his age and the fact that he retired as a Civil Servant after putting in nearly forty years of his productive life. The action of the Kaduna State government is unlawful, unconstitutional, murderous, offensive, despicable and reprehensible. We call on the United Nations, the European Union, Amnesty International, Human Rights watch of New York and all persons of good will to condemn these atrocious crimes against humanity by soldiers of the Nigerian Army and to demand efficaciousjustice for those killed unlawfully. We call for the arrest and prosecution of all the operatives and commanders of the Soldiers who directed the killings of innocent citizens whose only offence was seeking to use their persuasive might to defend their property”.
HURIWA cited the provisions of the GrundNorm the brute and illegal action violated as follows: Section 33 stated thus: 33. (1) Every person has a right to life, and no one shall be deprived intentionally of his life, save in execution of the sentence of a court in respect of a criminal offence of which he has been found guilty in Nigeria. 34. (1) Every individual is entitled to respect for the dignity of his person, and accordingly – a) no person shall be subject to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment; b) no person shall he held in slavery or servitude; and c) no person shall be required to perform forced of compulsory labour. 37. (1) Every person shall be entitled to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, including freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom (either alone or in community with others, and in public or in private) to manifest and propagate his religion or belief in worship, teaching, practice and observance. (2) No person attending any place of education shall be required to receive religious instruction or to take part in or attend any religious ceremony or observance if such instruction ceremony or observance relates to a religion other than his own, or religion not approved by his parent or guardian. (3) No religious community or denomination shall be prevented from providing religious instruction for pupils of that community or denomination in any place of education maintained wholly by that community or denomination. (4) Nothing in this section shall entitle any person to form, take part in the activity or be a member of a secret society. 40. (1) A citizen of Nigeria of a particular community, ethnic group, place of origin, sex, religion or political opinion shall not, by reason only that he is such a person:- a) be subjected either expressly by, or in the practical application of, any law in force in Nigeria or any executive or administrative action of the government, to disabilities or restrictions to which citizens of Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin, sex, religions or political opinions are not made subject; orb) be accorded either expressly by, or in the practical application of, any law in force in Nigeria or any such executive or administrative action, any privilege or advantage that is not accorded to citizens of Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin, sex, religions or political opinions.
The Rights group has resolved to write the United Nations, European Union and ECOWAS to report both the Kaduna and the federal government over the extralegal killings of the citizens in Zaria.