Immigration death: Lawyers sue FG, Moro, others

Five civil rights lawyers under the aegis
of Due Process Advocates have asked a
Federal High Court in Abuja to compel
the Federal Government to pay N50m
general damages to each person who
died during the recruitment exercise
conducted by the Nigerian Immigration
Service.
The plaintiffs, Charles Ugwuonye, Friday
Yakson, Chinedu Onwuka and Samson
Ojo, representing themselves and the
group in the suit filed on Thursday, also
sought an order declaring that the
conduct or the execution of the NIS
2014 recruitment exercise was illegal,
unwarranted, and violated the
applicants' fundamental rights to life,
protection from inhuman and degrading
treatment, among others.
The Attorney-General of the Federation
and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed
Adoke (SAN); Ministry of Interior,
Minister of Interior, Mr. Abba Moro, NIS
and the Comptroller-General of NIS, Mr.
David Parradang, were joined as 2nd to
6th defendants respectively.
Another relief being sought by the
group include an order declaring that
the respondents, particularly Moro and
Parradang owed the duty of honesty and
candour to the applicants regarding the
true purpose and intention behind the
recruitment exercise.
While demanding an order directing the
respondents to refund each applicants'
N1,000, which they paid to participate
in the recruitment exercise, the
plaintiffs also demanded an order
directing the respondents to pay general
damages in the amount of N1m to each
living applicants for the violation of their
rights.
Other reliefs include "an order directing
the respondents to issue a written
apology to the applicants, which shall be
published in five Nigerian newspapers
and on the main website of the NIS and
which shall remain posted on the said
site for three years in memory of those
who died during the exercise and an
order awarding N3m only to the
solicitors as fees and cost of this
litigation."
According to them, the defendants had
a duty to superintend the recruitment
exercise "in a safe and healthy manner"
with due consideration to lives and the
wellbeing of those who applied for or
participated in the exercise.