EndSARS: Teenagers Arrested During Protest Abandoned In Ondo Prison
Two teens detained in Ondo State for allegedly engaging in the EndSARS countrywide rallies in October and November have been abandoned at the Ondo prison, according to SaharaReporters.
“Two boys who were arrested for EndSARS abandoned in Ondo Prison,” a source, who does not want to reveal their names yet, told SaharaReporters.
Their situation follows that of Kemisola Ogunniyi, a pregnant adolescent who gave birth in the Surulere Prison in Ondo after being arrested by the police for EndSARS operations.
On October 24, 2020, Ogunniyi was caught and imprisoned in Akure while heading to a pharmacy to get medication for her mother.
She was apprehended by the police, who said she was a participant in the state’s #EndSARS demonstration.
After public outcry and condemnation from various human rights organizations and campaigners, she was eventually released.
Despite the fact that Ogunniyi had given birth to a child, the Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, and the state Chief Judge, Olarenwaju Akeredolu, had refused to grant her bail.
Omoyele Sowore, a human rights activist, originally raised her issue on his Facebook page, claiming that the newborn’s mother was innocent and had never committed any wrongdoing.
“Wicked People. Rotimi Akeredolu and CJ, Olanrewaju Akeredolu, are in accord to deny Kemisola Ogunniyi and her newborn baby freedom. According to her, the chief judge just refused to grant her “administrative bail” because, according to her, the other three have a case to answer.
“#FreeKemisola; Kemisola and her baby are back in Surulere prison in Ondo. Kemisola was two months pregnant at the time of the arrest. They knew she was innocent but decided to place her on trial after one month in illegal detention.
“She was then charged before a Magistrate. They knew too well that the magistrate court had no jurisdiction to try Kemisola and the three others. She was thrown into jail with her pregnancy; her colleague, Ibukun, lost her pregnancy due to beatings from the Nigerian Army who arrested them,” Sowore had said on Twitter.
In October 2020, Nigerians across the country had stormed the streets to demonstrate against police brutality and bad governance under the #EndSARS campaign.
