A non-governmental organisation, Access to Justice, has alleged that the Nigerian Army had a “pre-determined mandate” to attack members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, in Zaria on Saturday.
The deadly clash left scores of the sect’s members dead. The Army claimed the sect made attempt on the life of the Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai.
But Access to Justice, during a press conference, addressed by its Director, Joseph Otteh, on Friday in Abuja, said the Army’s claim that the protesters were armed was untrue.
“The response of the Army towards the Shiite protesters was a crime against humanity,” said Mr. Otteh
He, therefore, warned that his organisation would not “hesitate to head for the International Criminal Court, ICC” and insisted that “the Army had a predetermined mandate to do what they did.”
Even as he said the organisation was not in support of blockade of a highway or violent protest by the Shiite Muslim group, Mr Otteh said “the Army lacked constitutional mandate to disperse protests or procession of any kind”.
In his view, what the Army ought to have done was to reach out to the police high command in Kaduna State to deploy personnel towards handling the protest.
He said, “The convoy of the Chief of Army Staff could have, in order not to escalate an already violate situation that was unraveling along Zaria Road, chosen another route into Kaduna."
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