President Bola Tinubu has directed the immediate release of all minors who were arrested over their alleged participation in last August’s #EndBadGovernance protests.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, announced this on Monday to State House correspondents during an emergency briefing at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.
Idris said, “The President…has ordered the immediate release of all the minors that have been arrested by the Nigeria Police without prejudice to whatever legal processes they are. He has directed that they be released immediately.
“Second, the President has also directed the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction to immediately see to the welfare of those minors, and also take part to ensure their smooth reunion with their parents or guardians wherever they are in the country.
“Number three, the President has directed that an administrative committee will be set up immediately to be headed by the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs to look at all issues surrounding the arrest, detention, the treatment, and finally, the release of these young minors.
“Fourthly, the President has also directed that all the law enforcement agents involved in the arrest and the legal processes will be investigated, and if there are any infractions found to have been committed by any official of Government, be him a law enforcement agency, or whoever that person may be appropriate, disciplinary action will be taken against him or her.”
There was an outrage over the weekend over the arraignment of 76 suspects, including 32 minors, before Justice Obiora Egwuatu at the Abuja division of the Federal High Court for participating in the #EndBadGovernance protests in August.
Civil society organisations and rights activists slammed the police and the government over the matter.
The defendants, who have been in detention for three months, were arrested in the Federal Capital Territory (Abuja); as well as Kaduna, Gombe, Jos, Katsina, and Kano states.
They were arraigned by the Inspector General of Police on 10 counts bordering on treason, intent to destabilise Nigeria and inciting to mutiny by calling on the military to take over the government from President Bola Tinubu, among others.
