By Umar Muhammad Puma
Human right lawyer Festus Keyamo, has appealed to the federal government to assist in ensuring that justice is done in the case of murdered Nigerian student, Toba Falode, in Dubai, UAE.
Keyamo, made the appeal yesterday, at the hearing of the House of Representatives Committee on Diaspora in Abuja, he further urged the House to prevail on the federal government to ensure that the matter is not swept under the carpet.
He expressed dismay with the conduct of the Dubai police in handling the matter. “There was a deliberate effort to keep Toba’s case out of the limelight.
He was also perturbed by the fact that under Dubai law there is no right for private prosecution, a situation he says makes it difficult for any counsel of the slain young man to pursue his case.
But he said he has appealed to OPP and sent a letter to that effect to the Nigerian embassy in the country, “which has been acknowledged, “we want pressure to be put on OPP in Dubai,” he emphasized
Giving her testimony mother of the 19 year old student, who is also a socialite of repute, Mrs. Aisha Falode, said after they started marshalling evidence that her son was actually murdered, “we suspected fraud since we knew Toba was not all by himself when he fell.”
She said “we are for justice. And to get it, we have petitioned the House, written to the president and addressed a press conference. We are clamouring that Toba must get justice.
Insisting that there is need for the case to be re-opened, Falode appealed to Nigerian embassies abroad to avail citizens with timely information on the legal complexities of the respective countries where they operate so that Nigerians visiting or doing business in such countries will not be ignorant of what obtains in such countries.
In her comments, chairman of the House committee on Diaspora, Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, assured the deceased’s mother that the committee has always stood on the principle that all Nigerian citizens abroad must be protected.
“We will do everything to ensure that Toba gets justice,” she stressed, condoling Falode that Nigerians and the government will stand by her.
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