The Federal Government has inaugurated a 10-member independent investigative committee to determine the circumstances surrounding the deaths of 37 people who were in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger State.
The committee, inaugurated in Abuja on Tuesday, September 22, was constituted following a directive by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the incident. The deaths occurred after people suspected of involvement in illegal mining were detained by the NSCDC Niger State Command. The circumstances and cause of the deaths remain under investigation.
Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, charged the committee to work independently and without interference, saying the families of the deceased deserve to know what happened.
He said the panel must establish the identities of those who died, investigate their arrest and detention, determine the cause and manner of death through appropriate medical and forensic examination, and establish whether negligence, misconduct, complicity or any breach of duty occurred.
The committee will also recommend appropriate disciplinary measures, compensation where applicable and steps to prevent a recurrence.
Tunji-Ojo directed the NSCDC leadership and other relevant officers to cooperate fully with the investigation and ensure that records and material evidence connected to the incident are preserved.
He warned that attempts to conceal evidence, intimidate witnesses or obstruct the investigation would be treated as a serious offence.
The committee is chaired by retired DSS Deputy Director-General Jonathan Kure, while Professor Isa Hayatu Chiroma (SAN), a former Director-General of the Nigerian Law School, serves as secretary.
Other members include retired AIG Hosea Hassan Karma, Professor Olayinka Buhari, Alhaji Abubakar Usman, retired Federal Permanent Secretary Idris Kuta, Miners Association of Nigeria National Secretary Liman Sulaiman, lawyer and human rights activist Deji Adeyanju, Blueprint Newspaper representative Zainab Suleiman Okino and public affairs analyst George Agbakahi.
The committee's chairman, Kure, said the members would approach the assignment without sentiment or reliance on media speculation, promising that their findings would be based on evidence gathered during the investigation.
The panel is expected to begin work immediately and submit its report within two weeks.
