In a controversial statement following the arraignment of 67 individuals in connection with the #EndBadGovernance protests, Rimazonte Ezekiel, counsel to the Federal Government, claimed that all the accused are adults, with most of them being married men and some even university graduates.
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Ezekiel vehemently denied the presence of minors among the suspects despite the video evidence, stating, “These boys that we brought to the court today are all adults. Most of them are married men. None of them is a minor.” He further asserted that the young children seen in the courtroom were merely accompanying their parents to greet their loved ones and were not the actual suspects standing trial.
According to Ezekiel, the protesters were arrested in Kaduna and Zaria for allegedly attempting to destabilize Nigeria using foreign flags, particularly Russian flags, and calling on the military to remove the president. He questioned the fairness of their actions, stating, “Is it fair to even remove the state governors that they don’t want democracy again? If you don’t like democracy, I will force you. You go back home and sit.”
The counsel maintained that everyone in the country is enjoying their fundamental rights and that the protesters started violent demonstrations without justification. “Everybody is enjoying free movement, and everything is moving fine in the country. These boys, only for no reason, started protests, violent protests with the flags, foreign flags, Russia flags, Harper. Is that what we want in this country?” Ezekiel asked rhetorically.
Ezekiel also accused the defense counsel of making statements to tarnish the image of the Nigerian police, emphasizing that all 43 defendants in his case were adults and were produced in court. He challenged the defense counsel, asking if they truly knew the suspects they were defending.
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The statements made by the Federal Government’s counsel have sparked further controversy surrounding the ages and circumstances of those arrested during the nationwide protests. Civil society organizations and opposition leaders continue to call for a thorough investigation into the matter and the release of any minors who may be among the detained protesters.
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