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Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in last year’s presidential election, Mr Peter Obi, have condemned the inhuman treatment of #EndBadGovernance protesters by the Federal Government.
The duo in separate statements on Friday, said the video of the malnourished children being arraigned before a Federal High Court for participating in the hunger protest, is disturbing.
Atiku said in the statement that it was reminiscent of a Nazi concentration camp, which he added, reflects the low premium the current government places on the lives of the vulnerable, especially children.
He referred to Section 11 of the Child’s Rights Act, which states that “Every child is entitled to respect for the dignity of his person,” and shall not be “subjected to physical, mental or emotional injury, abuse, neglect or maltreatment, including sexual abuse;” or “subjected to torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”
The former vice president noted that children were being prosecuted for their alleged role in the #EndBadGovernance protests, which took place between August 1 and August 10.
“If they are just being arraigned three months later, one can only imagine the sort of dehumanising conditions they had been subjected to and have been detained all this while,” he stated.
He described as reprehensible that President Bola Tinubu who claimed to have fought for Nigeria’s democracy and had led protests now demonises those who decide to demonstrate against the effects of his harsh and draconian policies.
“Children who are the most affected by these policies have every right to protest peacefully as guaranteed by the Constitution and the Child Rights Act.
“A nation can be assessed by the way it treats its most vulnerable citizens. It is saddening that even underage children are not spared from the wickedness of T-Pain.
“The disturbing condition under which the alleged accused children were brought to court projects the very justification for their participation in the protest in the first place,” Atiku added.
Obi on his X handle, denounced the poor handling of protesters, including minors, adding that the constitution in democratic dispensation allows the people to protest against bad governance that is affecting their livelihood.
He called on relevant authorities to investigate the horrendous incident, which he said, is an embarrassment to the country in the eyes of the global community.
The former Anambra State governor said the condition of the children shown in the video was worrisome, adding, “From their look, they were poorly handled despite being in the custody of the Federal Government of Nigeria.
“The offence alleged against these suspects, including minors, is protesting against bad governance that was directly affecting their livelihood and which our constitution under a democratic dispensation guarantees them.
“Curiously, most of the people in government today leveraged this aspect of the Constitution standing as champions of good governance while in opposition.
“Moreover, our status presumes that suspects deserve some dignity, even in a correctional home as human beings.”
He appreciated the judge handling the case for halting the trial and called on relevant authorities, especially the Minister of Justice and the Attorney General of the Federation, the Police, and the DSS, as well as the National Human Rights Commission, to thoroughly investigate such inhuman treatment of minors to avert such incidents in the future.
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