The Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to President Bola Tinubu on Students Engagement, Sunday Asefon, has called for an investigation into the killing of a Nigerian student who was studying at the University of Manitoba Canada, Stephen Afolabi Opaso.
The 19-year-old was killed by the Winnipeg Police Service in Manitoba, Canada, on 31 December 2023.
In a statement on Saturday, Asefon, who described the killing as barbaric and heartless, urged the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chairperson of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) to ensure that the incident was not swept under the carpet.
He said, “The impression in the public as gathered during an interaction with the official National Association of Nigerian Students earlier on the case is that the killing was racially motivated as the demised student was not welding a gun at the time of the incident and that the police officers would have acted differently if he were to be a white.
“The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chairperson of NIDCOM should ensure that the incident is not swept under the carpet.
“NANS and the entire Nigerian students should remain calm. We will follow the case up diligently until the Canadian authorities give a true account of the death of the Nigerian Student and compensate his family accordingly to avoid a diplomatic row that may lead to the closure of their embassy in Nigeria by Nigerian student Apex body NANS as earlier threatened if no action is taken by Federal Government of Nigeria within 3 working days”.
Supporting the SSA to the President, a human rights lawyer, Tolu Babaleye, called on the Federal Government to ensure justice was served on the matter, saying the threat the boy posed was not proportional to the defence method employed by the Canadian police.
He said, “The force applied by the police officer involved was too excessive. Assuming the boy was holding a gun, it would have been justified. The boy was said to be holding a knife; he would have looked for another means of disarming him instead of shooting him.
“I agree with the SSA that the issue should be investigated properly, but again, it depends on Canadian law. If it is under our criminal law in Nigeria for you not to be culpable in this kind of situation, the force you applied must be proportional to the threat the guy constituted at the time of the incident.
“You know this one has to do with diplomacy between the two countries because Nigeria and Canada have a very good relationship. I believe this incident will have to also be handled with wisdom because Canada is one of the countries that have opened its doors to our youths”.
