As pro-government platforms rush to defend the president Muhammadu Buhari’s administration on the #EndSARS tollgate shooting which doesn’t seem to go away, the United Kingdom chapter of ruling party, All Progressives Congress, has issued a 48 hours ultimatum for British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC, to retract its report.
Recall that BBC reported UK parliament voted international sanctions against Nigerian over the Lekki Tollgate shooting.
The party, APC UK, debunked the news and tagged it fake on its popular micro-blogging handle, Twitter. It wrote:
[FAKE NEWS BY @BBCNews]
a. @UKParliament DID NOT vote on 23/11 or vote international sanctions against
Flag of Nigeria. @BBCBreaking LIED!
b. @BBCWorld we hereby put you on notice to pull down the #FAKE report & apologise within 48hrs otherwise face corrective action including legal action
[FAKE NEWS BY @BBCNews]
a. @UKParliament DID NOT vote on 23/11 or vote international sanctions against 🇳🇬. @BBCBreaking LIED!
b. @BBCWorld we hereby put you on notice to pull down the #FAKE report & apologise within 48hrs otherwise face corrective action including legal action pic.twitter.com/YzMQYFdjmS
— APC United Kingdom (@APCUKingdom) November 24, 2020
The parliament, according to BBC, voted to impose some sanctions on the Nigerian government of the alleged killing of some unharmed #EndSARS protesters, ironically protesting the police brutality and extra judicial killings on October 20, 2020.
The vote, which has no legal power, was the result of a petition brought before the parliament signed by over 220,000 people.
The UK MPs said sanctions against Nigeria could hurt the population but called for an independent investigation and urged the British government to target officials implicated in the shooting of demonstrators.
They also condemned the freezing of protest organisers’ bank accounts and stressed that the right to peaceful protest was a key component of democracy.
An MP who was speaking on behalf of the British minister for Africa welcomed Nigeria’s decision to investigate alleged rights violations and the disbandment of a notorious police unit – the Special Anti-Robbery Squad.
But without committing to the idea of imposing sanctions, the MP said the UK would continue to press the Nigerian government to respect human rights.
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