Source: This Day Live
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has begun a probe into the alleged torture of a woman and her daughters at Ejigbo market in Ejigbo Local Council Development Area of Lagos State.

The commission, in a statement yesterday, assured the public that it would strive to facilitate the prosecution of persons involved in the incident.

A coalition of human rights group, led by the Leader of Women Arise for Change, Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, has also demanded the immediate prosecution of suspects arrested in connection with the dehumanisation of the victims.

NHRC Executive Secretary, Prof Bem Angwe, said in Abuja that the commission had waded into the matter and was expecting a report on the investigation going on in order to ensure the enforcement of the rights of the victims.

A woman, her daughter and her stepdaughter were said to have been tortured for allegedly stealing pepper at the Ejigbo Market, a suburb of Lagos State, recently.

Angwe said the commission would invoke its full powers in ensuring that those who perpetrated the dastardly act were brought to justice.

He said the commission under its enhanced mandate would not only bark but bite at those who took interest in violating the rights of others.

According to him, the Lagos State office of the commission had been directed to work with the police (IG) and other stakeholders to facilitate a thorough investigation of the matter and prosecution of the suspects.

He commended the actions taken by the state House of Assembly and the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, to unravel the identities of the suspects.

Okei-Odumakin also lent her voice to the clamour to get justice for the victims of the human degradation in Ejigbo as she demanded the immediate prosecution of the suspects arrested in connection with the incident.

The state assembly has also rewarded an informant that facilitated the arrest of the suspects with N500,000; another N500,000 was given to the parents of the late victim of the incident and N250,000 went to the traditional ruler who helped the committee on the matter.

Okei-Odumakin, at the presentation of the rewards in Lagos, called on the police to guarantee the prosecution of the suspects.

According to her, "We were well received by the House when we staged a protest on the matter. With the way the House handled the matter, I know that Nigeria will rise again. The blood of the late victim cries for justice."

She said she could not get over the horrible scenes after watching the video on December 11, 2013, adding that she had sent it to people like Hon. Funmi Tejuosho, Pastor Tunde Bakare and Professor Wole Soyinka.

At the presentation of the rewards, Lagos assembly Speaker, Hon. Adeyemi Ikuforiji, expressed shock at what happened, noting that he could not believe the incident occurred in the state, when he initially heard about it.

"It is a story we do not want to remember; we pray it never repeats itself, it is ungodly and inhuman. I could not believe it could happen in Lagos. When Dr. Okei-Odumakin came up with the issue, I did not believe it, but I had to set up a committee on the matter and I have been proved wrong," he said.

He thanked the House Committee on Public Petition for doing a good job on the matter, adding that their efforts showed that all hope "is not lost about Nigeria" and that "we will soon get there as a nation."
He also thanked Okei-Odumakin for her efforts in ensuring that the perpetrators of the act were apprehended.

The identities of the suspects, parents of the victims and the informant, who were all physically present, were concealed for security purposes.

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