No fewer than 848 Nigerians have lost their lives to extrajudicial violence across the country in the last three years.

In the first half of the year, over 127 Nigerians were victims of extrajudicial killings all over the federation.

This was contained in the mass atrocity tracker by an International Civil Society Organisation, Global Rights.

The report which was released on Friday, stressed that many Nigerians were living in fear as a result of brutality from law enforcement agents.

It partly read, “In the meantime, Nigerians continue to live in fear of law enforcement brutality – agents employed with their tax monies to protect them. Global Rights mass atrocities tracker reveals that between 2020 and the first half of 2023, at least 848 lives were tragically lost to extrajudicial violence. Of particular concern is that during the first half of 2023 alone, at least 127 people were victims of extrajudicial killings.

‘These statistics underscore the urgency of addressing this atrocious issue.”

The report warned that failure to address the issue of extrajudicial killings in the country could lead to violence and distrust.

“Impunity only leads to further impunity. Accountability is the only antidote to ending the cycle of atrocities and keeps both government and the governed securely within the contractual boundaries of the constitution. Failure to act on the atrocities of the past will
only lead to an ever-enlarging cycle of violence and distrust. When trust dies, a nation ends.

“The right to dissent in governance is a right that cannot be taken away from citizens in a democracy. Peaceful protests and demonstrations are established tools of democratic
expression backed by both domestic and international laws and have proven time and again to be critical catalysts for social change,” the report added.

Source: The Punch