Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has condemned what it called President Muhammadu Buhari's ill-conceived decision to extend the total lockdown of the Federal Capital Territory; Ogun State and Lagos State for a further two weeks with little or no concrete material and nutritional palliatives for the estimated 90 million absolutely poor Nigerians.

It therefore predicted an avalanche of class action suits demanding billions of damages to be filed by thousands of Nigerians against President Buhari for locking them up in their rooms; starving or attempting to starve millions of poor citizens to death and for failing to stop the massive but well-coordinated armed criminal attacks of Nigerians in their homes during the lockdown in Lagos, Ogun as well as many other parts of Nigeria similarly attacked by armed hoodlums and armed Fulani herdsmen. HURIWA said that under the INTERNATIONAL OBLIGATION TO PROTECT, President Muhammadu Buhari will be required to explain why his administration made no logistical arrangements to provide fool-proof security protection for millions of residents forced to stay indoors during the month long lockdown.

HURIWA in a statement signed by the National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and the National Media Affairs Director, Miss Zainab Yusuf lamented that whereas in other societies like Australia whereby citizens asked to embark on few weeks of LOCKDOWN due to the ravaging COVID-19 AILMENT are paid $700 USD equivalent weekly for maintenance but in Nigeria the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration has chosen to starve millions to death and has deployed badly behaved armed security forces to flog and humiliate members of the public who attempts to beat the inhumane and inconsiderate curfew to find some foods to sustain the lives of their starving members.

The group noted that the 36 states and the FCT governments are throwing poor people who go out in search of foods to eat into prisons under the guise of enforcement of the quarantine Act without regards to the human rights provisions enshrined in chapter four of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria of Nigeria (as amended).

“Our sad reality under the current administration is that the President and his minders are under the illusion that they are above the law and cannot be brought to justice no matter how heinous or monumental are the human rights violations committed by them and the security forces under their watch. The Quarantine Act does not give the President the right to starve over 87 million absolutely poor Nigerians under lock and key with no provisions for their sustenance to their untimely deaths which may be inevitable if no redress is immediately activated. The current administration must be told that Nigeria by becoming a party to INTERNATIONAL TREATIES, and international laws, the nation assumes OBLIGATIONS AND DUTIES UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW TO RESPECT, TO PROTECT AND TO FULFILL HUMAN RIGHTS.”

Besides, the rights advocacy group described as mean hearted and insensitive, the Federal Government’s decision to provide food reliefs to just a little above 3 million Nigerians out of the over 90 million of our citizens that are categorised by the World Bank; International Monetary fund; Brookings institution as absolutely poor and unable to find balanced nutritions to sustain them on daily basis.

The statement further recalled that in his national pre-recorded broadcast to Nigerians, the President failed to fully appreciate the inherent security implications of locking up citizens and making no concrete and supervised arrangements so the security forces provide efficient and effective security services in all parts of Nigeria.

It however carpeted President Buhari for not sympathising with hundreds of thousands of our citizens in such violent crimes prone areas of Lagos and Ogun states and specifically in Lagos State whereby the armed organized killer mafia known as ‘One Million Boys’ are on the rampage, robbing, raping, maiming, killing and destroying lives and property of the citizens.

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