ONYEDI GABRIEL, Port Harcourt
The Rivers State Executive Council has directed the police to compensate victims of their brutality saying the state would not take up such responsibility.
The council took the decision when the five-man committee set up by Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, to formulate a draft white paper on the recommendations of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry that investigated brutality and violation of fundamental human rights of citizens by the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (FSAR submitted its report to the Government House, Port Harcourt on Wednesday.
Speaking after the council’s meeting presided over by Wike, Rivers State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Prof. Zacchaeus Adangor (SAN), insisted that either the police authorities or indicted policemen and officers should pay the victims because the police is not part of the state government.
He said: “Executive Council has already accepted the conclusion of the white paper committee that compensation payable to victims of police brutality should paid by police officers who were found culpable or by police authorities because in law there is no way you can hold the State (Rivers) accountable for the acts of police officers who are not agents of the state.
“And so, as far as the issue of compensation is concerned, any compensation payable should be paid either by the police office involved in those acts of brutality or by the Nigerian Police Force.”
Adangor im a statement signed by Wike’s Special Assistant, Media, Kelvin Ebiri, explained that the council also directed his office to liaise with the judiciary in ensuring that quarterly reports were submitted to his office in respect of provision under the administration of Criminal Justice Law.
According to him, some of the provisions required that on monthly basis the Commissioner of Police should inform the Attorney-General about the number of persons held in police custody and their offences.
Adangor said council directed that public defenders’ department be established in all 23 local government areas to make access to justice easier for indigent litigants who could not afford services of lawyers.
He said: “The public defender essentially undertakes litigation on behalf of indigent litigants who cannot afford to retain the services of legal practitioners. And so, executive council has directed Attorney General to ensure that counsel in the Rivers State Ministry of Justice are posted to the 23 LGAs to man the office of the public defenders, so those lawyers posted to those LGAs can take up matters by indigent litigants because they can’t afford to retain the services of legal practitioners.”
The Attorney-General further explained that the Executive Council directed his office to publish a white paper based on the recommendations of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry, and transmit same to Police headquarters and the Rivers State Police Command for necessary action.
“The Attorney-General has been directed to publish a white paper containing the conclusion of the Governor of Rivers State on recommendations of the commission of inquiry and to transmit that white paper to the authorities of the Nigerian Police for necessary action, because the commission of inquiry had made several findings implication some police officers in the serial acts of brutality and violence against citizens of this country including the very notorious Akin Fakorode.”