NGO seeks compensation for family of twins killed by drunken policeman

chika ebuzor

January 26, 2016 4:51 AM

The Executive Director of the group, Mr Kehinde Oluwafunso, who made the call at a news conference in Lagos, added that his organisation would ensure that justice was done to the family.

An NGO, Twins Action Aid International, on Monday called for compensation for the family of the twin brothers and their friend killed by a drunken policeman in Ketu, Lagos in December.

The Executive Director of the group, Mr Kehinde Oluwafunso, who made the call at a news conference in Lagos, added that his organisation would ensure that justice was done to the family.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the policeman, Sgt. Stephen James, alleged to have been drunk on Saturday, Dec. 26, 2015, shot dead the twin brothers, Taiwo and Kehinde Oyesunle.

NAN reports that the policeman also killed a friend of the twins, simply identified as Jeje before shooting himself dead at Paulson Hotel, Anibaba Street, Ketu. The NGO, which expressed sadness over the killings, said that the communities of twins and their friend in Lagos State were mourning the demise of the young men who were in their early 30s.

"Morally, the action is highly condemnable in any sane society because it is an inhumanity to humanity and injustice.

"Constitutionally, the organisation is suing the Nigeria Police for this heartbreaking and unconstitutional action,’’ Oluwafunso said.

The executive director said that the Nigeria Police should compensate the family of Oyesunle and rehabilitate their mother. Oluwafunso also lamented that the police did not visit the family of the deceased, particularly their mother.

The NGO called on the Inspector-General of Police, Mr Solomon Arase, and the Lagos Police Commissioner, Fatai Owoseni, to visit the family as a mark of respect for the dead.

"The Lagos State Government or the concerned authority should rename Dairo Street, Ketu, where the twin brothers lived before their death as Taiwo and Kehinde Oyesunle Street.

"The Federal Government should overhaul the recruitment process into the Nigeria Police to check the continued enlistment of assassins,’’ Oluwafunso said.

chika ebuzor