Barrister Ifeanyi Ejiofor has condemned in strong terms what he describes as the use of “lethal force” at the popular Ogbo-Ogwu headbridge market, Onitsha, while calling for immediate investigation into the killing of unarmed protesters by the Nigerian police.
Mr Ejiofor, a prominent human rights lawyer, also called on the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, and the Commissioner of Police, Anambra State Command to “identify every officer who discharged a firearm or otherwise participated in any unlawful excesses; establish the circumstances and, where culpability is established, ensure that the law takes its full and uncompromising course.”
In a statement on Thursday, Ejiofor wondered why an unarmed trader could be shot at “close range” simply because he allegedly failed to yield to police order.
According to him, “there are serious allegations that some police personnel routinely operate within the market, ostensibly for enforcement purposes, but allegedly subject traders to persistent harassment, arrests and demands for gratification.”
He said ” these grave allegations, if established, demand urgent institutional scrutiny and appropriate accountability.”
Daily Intel Newspaper recalls that there was pandemonium on Wednesday at the bridge head area of Onitsha, Anambra State, following the alleged shooting of two persons by policemen at the popular Ogbogwu market junction.
According to eyewitness, one of the victims said to be loaders at the market, was carrying cartons of goods when he was allegedly accosted by policemen who demanded to know the contents of the cartons.
The victim was said to have refused to respond and allegedly attempted to flee, prompting the policemen to fire at him.
The incident which resulted to blockade of the Onitsha end of the Onitsha-Asaba-Enugu Expressway, and the disruption of vehicular movement triggered unrest and confrontation between security operatives and traders.
READ FULL STATEMENT
WHEN THE GUN IS TURNED AGAINST THE CITIZEN: URGENT DEMAND FOR AN IMPARTIAL INVESTIGATION INTO THE POLICE SHOOTING OF UNARMED PROTESTERS AT OGBO-OGWU HEADBRIDGE MARKET
I condemn, in the strongest and most unequivocal terms, the use of lethal force against unarmed civilians at the popular Ogbo-Ogwu Headbridge Market, Onitsha, and call for an immediate, thorough, impartial, transparent and independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding this deeply disturbing incident.
From accounts presently emerging from traders at the market, there are serious allegations that some police personnel routinely operate within the market, ostensibly for enforcement purposes, but allegedly subject traders to persistent harassment, arrests and demands for gratification. These grave allegations, if established, demand urgent institutional scrutiny and appropriate accountability.
More disturbingly, it is alleged that on Wednesday morning, a trader leaving the market with a carton of goods was pursued by policemen and, after reportedly failing to stop, was shot at close range. That incident is said to have triggered the subsequent civil protest, during which allegations of indiscriminate police shooting reportedly resulted in serious injuries and loss of lives.
This represents a deeply disturbing departure from the constitutional and professional duty of law-enforcement officers to protect life, preserve public order and exercise their powers with restraint, necessity and proportionality. A civilian protest, however tense or disorderly, cannot by itself become a licence for the indiscriminate deployment of lethal force.
I therefore call upon the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Disu, and the Commissioner of Police, Anambra State Command, to ensure an immediate, independent and painstaking investigation into the incident; identify every officer who discharged a firearm or otherwise participated in any unlawful excesses; establish the circumstances and, where culpability is established, ensure that the law takes its full and uncompromising course.
The dead cannot speak for themselves. The injured deserve justice. The bereaved deserve answers. And the public deserves the truth.
I trust that the leadership of the Nigeria Police Force will rise above institutional sentiment, investigate without fear or favour, and demonstrate that the uniform is a shield for the citizen, not a licence to violate the citizen.
Signed:
Sir Ifeanyi Ejiofor, Esq., KSC
Dunu-Ezeugosinachi
August 20, 2026
