Two years after the nationwide rallies against hardship in which 12 protesters were killed and dozens injured in Kano State, families of the victims are still waiting for government compensation.
The #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria protests took place between August 1 and 10, 2024 against the cost of living crisis, Daily Trust reports.
The economic suffering was blamed on the twin policies of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s elimination of petrol subsidy and currency floating.
The victims were reportedly shot dead by security agents deployed to disperse the protestors.
Grief continues to ripple across areas in Kano such as Daurawa Koki, Rijiyar Lemo and Ring Road where relatives claim innocent lives were lost during a rally that started peacefully but spiralled into violence.
Amnesty International has criticised the killings as intentional and unconstitutional, saying peaceful rallies over government policies had become “a matter of life and death in Nigeria.”
It said at least 24 people have been murdered in protests across the country, with Kano having the largest number of deaths. It has identified other places where demonstrators were murdered as Jigawa, Katsina, Borno, Niger and Kaduna States.
It had accused the authorities of trying to cover up evidence and not holding security people accountable.
Following the tragedy, the Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf had set up the Justice Lawal Wada Committee to investigate the fatalities and devastation that took place during the protest. Families presented videos, testimony and other information to the committee
Among other things, the committee urged the prosecution of individuals guilty and the compensation of victims.
But two years later, the families say none of the recommendations have been put in place, frustrating them and leaving them growing impatient.
Three demands from families
Sagiru Usman Yarima, who is leading the battle for justice on behalf of the victims’ relatives, told our correspondent yesterday that memories of the killings are very fresh.
“Ali, who used to be like a little brother to me, was shot in our neighbourhood of Daurawa Koki. Muhammadu was shot in the leg and the bullet is still in there. Firdausi was slain on his way to acquire charcoals at Rijiyar Lemo. Isma’il, only 13, was shot in the leg. These were lives of innocence.
“I brought most of them forward myself. “The committee accepted our reports, but two years down the line, nothing has been implemented,” Yarima stated.
The families are asking the prosecution of individuals identified by the committee, recompense for those slain, maimed and whose possessions were destroyed as well as “recognition and dignity” for the victims, he said.
The families were getting impatient, little by little, after exhausted all peaceful ways of persuading the government to implement the committee’s findings, he said.
Victim I still have a gunshot in my body
Muhammad Alhassan, who lives in Daurawa district of Kano, told our correspondent yesterday how he was shot while escaping after witnessing the execution of his companion.
Police started shooting when we were viewing the rally from our neighbourhood. One of my friends, Ali, got shot in the head. In the head. He later died in hospital. We rushed and can not pick him from the pool of his blood, lest we can be hit also.
“Unfortunately I was also shot, and the bullet is still in my body. We rushed to the hospital and the doctors told us if it was removed straight away it could touch my central nervous system. “That is why I am still living with the bullet because it’s not yet the right time to remove it according to the doctors,” Alhassan said.
Fa’iza Haruna of Rijiyar Lemo reported her sister Firdausi was killed a week before her wedding while going to buy charcoal.
“She was getting married the next week, even. She came out to purchase charcoal, simply. The police shot her dead on the spot.”
She has two children. We have video of the killer confessing his deed and asking for secrecy. We appeal to the governor to help the orphans. “Even her seven-year-old son said he wanted to be a policeman so he could take revenge for his mother’s death,” Fa’iza said.
Hajara Abdulqadir, whose son was then 12, was wounded in the hip and the family struggled to get medical attention, the family alleged.
He stated that he was outside our home playing football when he was shot. We took him to numerous hospitals but they all refused to treat him till finally he was accepted at Sir Sanusi Hospital. At first we assumed he was dead, even. We want justice and a compensation.”
Two years later, Amnesty International blames government inaction
On the second anniversary of the demonstration, the Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Isa Sanusi, told our correspondent that the government had not ensured justice for victims and survivors.
“Two years after the police resorted to the use of lethal force and mass arbitrary arrests against peaceful #EndBadGovernance protesters, the Nigerian authorities have failed to ensure justice for victims and survivors. “Strangely, the police are denying serious allegations of extrajudicial killing, torture and illegal arrests,” Sanusi said.
Sanusi called the convictions “sham trials based on bogus charges” and said other nonviolent protestors have been convicted with hearings still underway in Abuja, Kano, Jigawa, Katsina and Kaduna.
“Even though these violations are serious, no member of the security forces has been prosecuted,” Sanusi said.
There has been no justice for the 24 nonviolent demonstrators who were killed. Those responsible these atrocities must be brought to book,” he said.
He accused the government of proceeding with prosecution against the protestors despite “overwhelming evidence that they did not break the law”.
“What happened in some parts of Nigeria from 1 to 10 August 2024, is a clear demonstration of the total disregard of the government for human rights,” Sanusi stated.
He cautioned that if police were not held accountable, security personnel would be encouraged to continue using firearms in a tactical manner to control demonstrations illegally.
He stated, “The government’s violent crackdown on the #EndBadGovernance protests is a human rights baggage that must not be swept under the carpet.”
‘Our recommendations to the government’
Justice Lawal Wada, the chairman of the committee established by the Kano State Government, stated the report was submitted in January 2025.
He said the committee recommended assistance to the families of the dead and injured, compensation to victims of looted or destroyed properties, reforms of family and marriage institutions, compulsory drug tests for intending couples, steps to curb political thuggery and the establishment of a Kano Elders Forum.
“The committee also recommended to tackle Almajiranci and street begging,” he stated.
Justice Wada further said that the committee calculated the entire financial damages from looting and vandalism during the protest at around N11.47 billion.
He mentioned affected organisations and enterprises to include the Kano State High Court, Judicial Service Commission, Kano Printing Press, NCC, Barakat Mall, Rufaida Drinks, Garba A.D.’s House, Capital City University and the Kano State Sharia Commission.
The suggested compensation has not been paid, but he said the government has begun to fulfil some of the committee’s recommendations.
Our correspondent made attempts to get remarks from the Director-General, Media and Publicity, Kano Government House, Sanusi Bature Dawakin Tofa who doubles as the spokesman of the governor, but he was not responsive. Calls to his telephone line went unanswered and a text message sent to him had not been responded at the time of reporting this story.
But a source in the Office of the Secretary to the state government, who did not want to be named because he was not permitted to comment on the matter, confirmed to our reporter that the recommendations of the committee were brought to the State Executive Council and are being awaited for action.
The Justice Wada committee submitted its report here and constituted a six-man white paper implementation committee. “This committee also completed its work immediately, all materials were submitted to the governor’s office,” the source said.
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