Human rights lawyer Femi Falana has formally written to the Attorney-General of the Federation, AGF, demanding the immediate prosecution of 10 soldiers accused of killing three police officers in Taraba State, as well as 400 individuals alleged to have financed terrorism in Nigeria.
Falana, writing on behalf of a group of legal practitioners
advocating human rights and public accountability, said the cases were
previously stalled under the former AGF, Abubakar Malami.
The senior lawyer stated that the 10 soldiers allegedly
killed the police officers in August 2019 to protect a notorious kidnapper,
Bala Hamisu, also known as Wadume, and that charges against them were withdrawn
through a controversial application for nolle prosequi.
He also drew attention to a separate case involving 400
alleged terrorism financiers, mostly currency exchange operators linked to Boko
Haram.
According to him, the suspects were arrested and
investigated by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit and the Department of
State Services, but prosecutions were not initiated despite judicial strikes
ending in mid-2021.
He maintained that the timely prosecution of the suspects
and the recovery of proceeds from the financiers would have significantly
strengthened Nigeria’s counter-insurgency efforts.
Falana further emphasised that terrorism is not subject to
any statute of limitations and called for the re-arrest and immediate
prosecution of the soldiers and financiers in the interest of national
security.
Copies of the letter were also sent to the National Security
Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.
“We are a firm of legal practitioners involved in the
defence of human rights and promotion of public accountability in Nigeria.
“In view of the recent declaration of the Federal Government
to intensify the war on terror, we deem it fit to draw your attention to the
cases of terrorism financiers that were covered up by your immediate
predecessor, Mr. Abubakar Malami SAN,” the letter partly read.
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