Civil Society Groups Call for Investigation into Murder of  Lagos Youth Leader

Sunday Okobi

A coalition of civil society organisations (CSOs) in Nigeria has  called on the federal and state governments as well as the Inspector General of Police (IG) to investigate what it described as the gruesome murder of Mr. Sheriff Ishola Salami at Moba town, Ajiranland in Lagos, on April 18, 2023.

During a peaceful protest at the Governor’s Office, NHRC office, and the state Police Command all in Ikeja, the President of CHSR, Mr. Alex Omotenhinse, disclosed that Late Salami was the youth leader in Ojomu community, Ajiranland, who was loved by all because he stood for justice, adding that for justice to prevail, the perpetrators of the murder must be brought to book.

He said:  “Following the murder of Mr. Sherriff Ishola Salami, we had made representations to the Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zonal Command headquarters, Zone II, Onikan, Lagos via a petition to draw the attention to the indifference of the police and apparent lack of commitment to investigate the incident which was duly reported at Ogombo Police Station.

“We are by this advocacy joined by Mrs. Mariam Ishola Salami, the widow of the deceased, to submit separate petitions to the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Police Command and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) through the Lagos Office of the agency.”

Omotenhinse, who spoke on behalf of other leaders of the groups, said: “As civil society groups, we are deeply touched by the pain of the immediate family of the deceased. The police authorities in Lekki axis of Lagos State appear uninterested in investigating the murder which was perpetrated in broad day light. The immediate family members of the deceased are worried and frustrated by the delay that is increasingly assuming a deliberate ploy to shield the perpetrators of the heinous crime from justice.

“The deceased, who was the breadwinner of the family, left behind his critically ill aged mother (who unfortunately died in her inconsolable state in October, 2023); his wife Mrs. Mariam Ishola Salami and three young daughters, Sinata, 5, Ayisha, 4, and Arafat, 2. We are now convinced that eight months after the cold-blooded murder of Salami, the police authorities in Lagos State have failed in their statutory duty of investigation in spite of the fact that the incident was duly reported at the Ogombo Police Station, Lekki.

“The report before us was that he attended a ceremony, where some young guys who came in with a Sienna van, and masked up, murdered him. Even the chairman of that local government area testified that he has written to the Ogombo Police Division to investigate this matter. Unfortunately, up till now, it seems that the murderers have the power to suppress the police from doing the investigation. We are not asking for too much, but an investigation into the death of Salami.

“We are, therefore, by the submissions of these petitions requesting that the state government and the state Commissioner of Police should act without further delay in activating investigation into the murder. We are also requesting that the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and the National Human Rights Commission should demand urgent action leading to thorough investigation into the gruesome murder without further delay.”

Meanwhile, in his response, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Waheed Ayilera, who represented the state Police Commissioner, promised a thorough investigation into the matter, saying: “We will surely look into this. The state CID will be employed to carry out the investigation. Investigation is done through empirical evidence not hearsay so those that have facts of what happened should make themselves available to the police, and I’m assuring you that investigation will be opened on this case today.

The commissioner, who expressed surprised that since April 2023 nothing has been done on the murder, assured the protesters that “if nothing has been done on this matter before, today something will be done. You don’t need to go to Panti with this crowd, no need for protest, what we want is factual witnesses who have the evidence of what happened.”

At the office of the NHRC in Alausa, the Lagos State Coordinator of the commission, Dr. Lucas Koyejo, who commended the CSHR effort, said everybody has right to life and that’s where the human rights commission comes in.

He said: “It is the duty of the police to investigate the case; we are receiving this petition for the first time, and we’ll ensure that justice is done. We’ll look at the case, we’ll go to the Commissioner of Police and know what they have done about it. I can assure you that your representatives will be getting feedback from us.”