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From Okey Sampson, Umuahia
Abia State Government has condemned the brutal killing of a Nigerian from Abia by the South African police, saying it received the news of the killing with shock and deep sadness.
The deceased, Mr. Chika Ibe, who hailed from Lokpaukwu, Umunneochi Local Government Area of Abia State, was said to have died in the hands of members of the South African Police Service in Cape Town on Wednesday, July 23.
A statement by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Ferdinand Ekeoma said: “Disturbing videos circulating online show police officers assaulting Mr. Ibe, with one officer allegedly using a polyethylene bag to repeatedly suffocate him until he died.
“The circumstances surrounding the operation are still under investigation, but what is clear from the footage is a level of cruelty that is condemnable in the strongest terms. In one of the videos, Mr. Ibe was heard shouting loudly ‘I’m dying’ yet the police officers remained unperturbed until he stopped breathing.”
The statement said it was unfortunate the incident was coming on the heels of reports that another Nigerian, Mr. Egwabor Patrick Chuks, was also shot and is currently receiving treatment for severe injuries.
Abia State, while joining the Federal Government in condemning the dastardly act, recalled with pain that in recent times, many Nigerians have either been killed, assaulted or had their businesses looted in a wave of xenophobic attacks and targeted violence carried out by some South Africans.
The Abia Government said Nigerians in the diaspora deserve to live with dignity and safety, not in fear.
The government went further to state as follows: “That the demands by the Federal Government of Nigeria for immediate answers from the South African government through a swift, transparent, and independent investigation into the killing be done quickly.
“That the perpetrators of this heinous act must be identified, arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Anything short of justice will be a further insult to Nigeria and to the memory of this Abian and other Nigerians that had died in similar circumstances.
“That the government of South Africa should immediately bring this carnage to a halt by genuinely calling its citizens to order. These attacks are a very sad commentary on Africans who are supposed to live as brothers and sisters.”
The government commiserated with Ibe’s family and prayed to God to grant them the fortitude to bear loss.
