A chieftain of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Bayelsa state, Hon. Sunday Frank-Oputu has challenged the state governor, Senator Douye Diri to commence immidiate implementation of the #EndSARS panel report submitted four months ago.
The judicial panel headed by Justice Emmanuel Ogola (rtd) had in july recommended that eleven police personnel be prosecuted over alleged cases of murder and manslaughter and a total of N21, 056, 367,840.00 billion awarded to petitioners as compensation.
Frank-Oputu, while commenting on the delay in the implementation of the #EndSARS panel report submitted by Retired Justice Emmanuel Ogola, argued that the continued silence of the state governors and the federal government over the panels reports submitted by various #EndSars panels is raising suspicion over suspected deceit against victims of police brutalities and killings.
Hon. Sunday Frank-Oputu, who is also a state chairmanship aspirant of the APC in Bayelsa, also urged the state governors particularly the Bayelsa state governor, Senator Douye Diri to commence implementation despite the delay by the federal government.
According to him, “Bayelsa for once should lead by example. They should not always join the queue. This is the right of the people. Implementation of the report should have commenced within 30 days of its submission. Instead, the victims were again reminded of their gory expirience and left to wallow in hopelessness.
“Nobody is even talking about the implementation of the panel report. Why are the states waiting for the federal government? The people have suffered and they are Bayelsans and Nigerians. If the states pay the money, the federal government will pay them back. If they implement, they are doing it for their people. “
It would be recalled that the Judicial Panel of Inquiry set up to look into cases of police brutality and extra-judicial killings in Bayelsa state had in July submitted its report to the state government after a sitting that lasted seven months.
The Judicial Panel headed by Justice Emmanuel Ogola (rtd) also recommended that a police officer be dismissed out rightly while four other police officers be demoted over their roles in the alleged cases of extra-judicial killing.
The panel also stated that despite the lack of cooperation from the men of the Nigerian police and the Nigerian Army, they concluded sitting after hearing of fifty petitions filed against personnel of the Nigerian police and the military in the last seven months.
According to the panel, “The Bayelsa State Judicial Panel set up to hear petitions (11) Officers recommended for prosecution, Forty Four(44) Cases against the Nigerian Police Force, Six (6) Cases against the Nigerian Army. One (1) Police Officer recommended for outright dismissal from the Force and Four (4) Police Officers recommended for Demotion.”
