The House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Relations has summoned Nigeria Consular-General to South Africa, Amb. Uche Ajulu-Okeke to appear before it on Wednesday on the latest killing of a Nigerian in South Africa.
Worried by the series of killings of Nigerians abroad, Rep. Nnenna Elendu-Ukeje, Chairperson of the Committee on Sunday said that the committee would look into the latest killing.
“I can confirm to you that we have sent an invitation to the Consular-General in South Africa to come and intimate the committee on the details of her investigation on the trends of killing of Nigeria citizens in South Africa.
“We are aware that a formal protest had been lodged with her over the latest extra judicial killing of a Nigerian in South Africa. We want to engage her and know how far she had gone in her investigation.
“The outcome of that engagement with the Consular-General on Wednesday will determine our next course of action on the matter,” Elendu-Ukeje said.
The lawmaker, who represents Bende Federal Constituency of Abia, said the same invitation was extended to the officials of the Nigeria Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday.
Ukeje condemned the recent killing of a Nigerian in South Africa, saying the extra judicial killing of Nigeria citizens in South Africa was disturbing.
She said her committee in conjunction with other stakeholders would work out measures geared towards stopping the killing of Nigeria citizens anywhere in the world.
It would be recalled that Nigerians living in Gauteng Province of South Africa protested the alleged extra-judicial killing of a 34- year-old man, Timothy Chinedu, by the police.
Mathew Okafor, the Chairman of the Nigeria Union in Gauteng Province, told newsmen in Johannesburg that Chinedu was allegedly suffocated to death by the police after his arrest at 9.00 a.m. on Saturday.
The late Chinedu was a native of Isiala Mbano Local Government Area of Imo.
Okafor claimed that another Nigerian, who witnessed the incident at Kempton Park in Ekulurheni Municipality, Gauteng Province, saw the South African police arrest the deceased, tied his hands and covered his face with a cellophane bag.
“We suspect that Chinedu died of suffocation. That is why Nigerians in the province mobilised and staged a protest against this extra-judicial killing.
“The South African police is alleging that he died after ingesting drugs but a Nigerian witnessed the entire incident and reported it to us.
“The case has been handed over to the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) that investigates police misconduct in South Africa.
“An autopsy is being carried out and we are waiting for the coroner’s report. We have also reported this incident to the national body of Nigeria Union and Nigerian Mission in South Africa as well as the family of the deceased.
“We take exception to the continued torture of Nigerians by the South African police. The union believes that there is the due process to follow after a suspect is arrested instead of resorting to torture,” Okafor said.
He implored the Federal Government to intervene by persuading the South African government to look into the continued killings of Nigerians by the police.
“We also want to state that the Nigerian did not die of drug ingestion as being alleged by the South African police,” he said.
Nigeria`s Consul General to South Africa, Uche Ajulu-Okeke, said that the mission had received the report of the killing of the Nigerian.
She said the mission would investigate the incident and present a report to the Federal Government.
Ajulu-Okeke, however, appealed to Nigerians to remain law abiding and report any incident to the union and the mission.
Follow Us