Five youth members of the Anambra State Judicial Panel of Inquiry on police brutality and extra- judicial killings have resigned.
They are Chijioke Ifediora; Henry Ugwu; Osonwa Chukwuka; Ebelechukwu Ngini and Chibuike Obiwuzie.
They announced their resignation, which took effect yesterday, in an open letter to Governor Willie Obiano.
Ifediora said their decision followed government’s insincerity towards the panel. He also accused the government of failing to provide the panel with the necessary logistics and support it needed to function effectively.
According to Ifediora, people were already seeing members of the panel as conniving with the government to deny them right to fair hearing.
Ifediora said the government has two weeks to fulfil all conditions to reconvene the panel, or youths would hit the streets in protest.
He said: “The government had demonstrated, through its treatment of the panel, that it was not set up to genuinely address the plight of victims and families of police brutality.
“Over 250 pending petitions from the 310 submitted, but no word from government since the panel adjourned early December, whereas it was to resume January 14.
“The application for more sitting days to enable the panel attend to cases had not been granted, and the society now sees members as conniving with government to deny them right to fair hearing.
“We refuse to be pawns in the game of the government, so we hereby resign our appointments and dissociate ourselves from the charade put up to give lip service to the people’s plights.”
