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FG berates Amnesty International over call for service chiefs’ prosecution

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The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has berated the Amnesty International (AI) over its call for the arrest and prosecution of former Service Chiefs.

AI had in its recent report, called for the arrest and prosecution of the service chiefs at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged human rights violation in the prosecution of war against terror in the North-East region.

Speaking on “Politics Nationwide,” a Radio Nigeria programme monitored by our correspondent on Tuesday in Abuja, Mohammed said the global human rights protection organisation should “shut up because it had no proof of crimes committed by the Nigerian military’’.

He said the country was fighting an unconventional war with insurgency that had no rule of engagement, adding that this was a double jeopardy for the military which had been applying the rule of engagement.

“Those who are asking our solders to be invited to the ICC are very unpatriotic, its a pure hypocrisy and double standard, especially on the path of AI.

“AI have different laws for different countries, so they should shut up if they have no proof of any crime committed by our solders,” the minister said.

He recalled the stand of AI during the EndSARS protests when it asked the Federal Government not to arrest and prosecute hoodlums who killed police men and burnt down police stations.

“When the Federal Government wanted to arrest hoodlums who killed 37 policemen, six solders, destroyed properties, burn down police stations, AI said they are innocent people.

“In the U.S., some mobs went to Capitol Hill to protest the election that brought President Joe Biden, America said it was an insurrection but AI never deemed it fit to say anything,” he said.

He said the AI had shown that it had different laws for Nigeria and another for the U.S.

The minister also said that the recent rating by Transparency International ranking Nigeria as the second most corrupt in Africa was not a true reflection of the Federal Government on its fight against corruption

He said that the Federal Government was still studying the reports, adding that the government anti-corruption fight was on course.

The minister described the ranking as “inappropriate’’, stressing that it was not a true reflection of the efforts of the government at stamping out corruption in the country.

Femi Ogunshola

NEWSVERGE, published by The Verge Communications is an online community of international news portal and social advocates dedicated to bringing you commentaries, features, news reports from a Nigerian-African perspective. A unique organization, founded in the spirit of Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, comprising of ordinary people with an overriding commitment to seeking the truth and publishing it without fear or favour. The Verge Communications is fully registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as a corporate organization.

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