Why UK authorities must investigate confrontation involving INEC chairman – Ajulo

Ondo State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Dr Olukayode Ajulo, has urged British authorities to investigate the reported confrontation involving INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, in London.

Ajulo made the call in a statement issued in Akure on Saturday.

He was reacting to the reported incident outside Chatham House in London on Nov. 12 during which the car conveying the INEC Chairman was ambushed as he was about to leave the venue by a group of protesting Nigerians asking him to disembark and calling him unprintable names.

Ajulo, a member of the Royal Institute of International Affairs, described the incident as a concern for civility, human dignity and the rule of law.

He said Chatham House, a renowned institution for intellectual discourse, should remain a place for peaceful exchange of ideas.

He acknowledged citizens’ rights to protest and hold public officials accountable, but warned against intimidation and harassment.

Ajulo said INEC’s independence, transparency and credibility remained essential to the legitimacy of Nigeria’s electoral democracy.

He noted that Nigerian and British laws protected peaceful assembly but prohibited harassment, unlawful obstruction and threats to personal security.

“Democracy must protect the voice of the protester, but it must equally protect the person against whom the protest is directed,” he said.

Ajulo urged the Metropolitan Police and relevant British authorities to investigate the incident independently.

He also called for the preservation of CCTV footage and security records to establish what transpired.

He said any evidence of threatening behaviour, unlawful obstruction or other criminal conduct should attract appropriate legal consequences.