The Judicial Panel of Inquiry on Police Brutality and other Related Matters set-up by Ondo state government has recommended the payment of N755, 730,897.83 as compensation to various victims and petitioners who appeared before it in the state.
The panel was set up in the wake of the October 2020 demonstrations against police brutality under the #EndSARS campaign.
The chairman of the panel, Justice Adesola Sidiq, while submitting the committee’s reports and recommendations to Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, said the panel received 77 petitions, out of which 14 were criminal while 63 were civil matters.
He said the committee also recommended the publication of apologies in national dailies, particularly, where the reputation of victims had been tarnished.
The chairman also called for a review of section 84 of the sheriffs and civil process act (2004) to enable judgment creditors enjoy the fruit of their litigations.
He said: “Apart from the monetary recommendations which totaled the sum of N755,730,897.88, the panel equally recommended publication of apologies in national dailies, particularly where the reputation of victims had been tarnished.
“Mr Governor sir, the panel, after careful consideration of its limitations in line with extant supreme court judgments on the powers of panels of inquiry to entertain res-judicata cases, I suggest that it is high time a review is carried out on section 84 of the sheriffs and civil process act (2004) to enable judgment creditors enjoy the fruit of their litigations.
“On the issue of vandalised property, the panel, after various visits to the ‘locus in quos’, observed that four out of the 18 local government areas, namely: Akure south, Ondo west, Odigbo and Okitipupa were affected during the #EndSARS protests.”
While responding, Governor Akeredolu thanked the panel for a job well done noting that human rights violation is one of the problems facing the country.
