Condemnations have trailed the arraignment of some distressed minors alongside adults who protested against bad governance and hunger in Nigeria.
The Federal Government dragged the peaceful protesters of the nationwide #EndBadGovernance including 32 minors before an Abuja Federal High Court on Friday.
However, there was panic within the courtroom when some of the minors collapsed during the arraignment.
The minors were arraigned for alleged treason by participating in August’s 10 days nationwide protests against hunger and bad governance.
It was gathered that the minors, who have been held by the Nigeria Police Force since August, were deprived of adequate care while in detention.
The incident occurred as they were being transported from various police detention cells, including those from the Intelligence Response Team (IRT).
No sooner than they arrived court premises that couple of the young lads lost consciousness inside the courtroom.
Sources claimed that they fainted due to maltreatment and lack of sufficient food for the days they were detained. They further alleged that authorities are using hunger as a form of torture against the young protesters for merely exercising their constitutional rights.
Photos and videos from the courtroom depicted the distressing scene, showing some teenagers writhing on the floor while others attempted to assist them.
One lawyer was captured trying to resuscitate a protester who collapsed in the dock.
The detention of the minors and other protesters was mandated by Justice Emeka Nwite, who approved an ex-parte application from the police to keep the minors in custody for 60 days as part of their investigation into the protests, which were aimed at addressing worsening insecurity and hardship attributed to President Bola Tinubu’s policies.
Condemning their arraignment and treatment, former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, lambasted the President Bola Tinubu-led federal government over the illegal detention of malnourished minors.
Reacting to videos of the collapsed minors, Atiku, the former presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general elections, said that Tinubu’s wickedness could not allow him to spare children who were protesting against his “harsh and draconian” policies in the country.
Atiku in a post on X said that the horrible scene of the collapsed malnourished minors in court is reminiscent of a Nazi concentration camp, which is a reflection of the low premium Tinubu-led government places on the lives of the vulnerable, especially children.
The former Vice President noted that it is reprehensible that President Tinubu who claims 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.
Similarly, Shehu Sani, a former federal lawmaker from Kaduna State, expressed deep concerns over the detention of minors involved in the #EndBadGovernance protests.
Sani in a tweet on Friday questioned the justification behind their prolonged detention, saying there is no justification for the incarceration of the poor children.
He appealed to the Federal Government to set them free.
Also expressing outrage over the development, the Socio-Economic Rights And Accountability Project (SERAP) called for the immediate and unconditional release of all detained #EndBadGovernance protesters in prison and dropping of charges against them.
In a post on X handle, SERAP demanded that President Tinubu’s administration must promptly investigate the apparent ill-treatment of #EndBadGovernance protesters in prison and prosecute those responsible.
In the same vein, Omoyele Sowore, the convener of the #RevolutionNow movement, strongly condemned President Tinubu’s government for prosecuting minors who allegedly participated in the #EndBadGovernance protests.
Sowore, a former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, criticized the government for its “shameless” treatment of these malnourished minors, who he believes deserve access to free education and healthcare, rather than being put on trial for treason.
Joining in the condemnation, Amnesty International wondered the rationale behind the prosecution of children who demanded good governance, calling for their immediate release.
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