A six-member Judicial Panel of Enquiry was established by the Bayelsa State government on Tuesday to investigate the violence that took place in the Nembe-Bassambiri community on February 15 and left three locals dead.
The investigation is taking place around six months after the incident.
Justice Margaret Akpomiemie, a former chief judge of the state, will preside over the panel and serve as its secretary. Mr. Diepreye Omubo, a representative of the state ministry of justice, will serve as the panel’s chairman. Other members include Vining Goselle, a representative of the National Human Rights Commission’s Bayelsa office, Chief Fedude Zimughan, Mrs. Josephine Igodo, and Love Amaseimogha.
The group has three weeks to finish its task, which includes giving the government a report of its conclusions so that it may take the necessary action.
At the panel’s inauguration at the Government House in Yenagoa, Governor Douye Diri stated that the panel’s mandate was to carefully investigate both the immediate and remote causes of the unrest in Nembe-Basambiri that resulted in the fatalities on February 15.
Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, Diri’s deputy, who attended the ceremony in his place, stated that the panel’s chairman and members were carefully picked for the important task based on their qualifications and depth of expertise.
“We are going to uncover the cause of the death and those guilty for the killings,” Mr Doubara Atasi, the deputy governor’s communications adviser, said in a statement. Because every life matters, this is essential.
