This is an investigative Report by We the People into the drivers and circumstances of over 500 children who live on the streets of Calabar. The females are called ‘Lacasera girls’, a reference to their availability for sexual activities at the cost of a Lacasera drink. The boys are called ‘Skolombo’ roughly translating crackhead or…
*This chat with the Executive Director of We the People was conducted by Budgit on Twitter and first published on Medium in October 2020 The challenges of benefit transfer to host communities in oil producing states is certainly not a new conversation. In fact, the discourse has been a laser focus in recent years,…
At least 48 persons were murdered in extra judicial circumstances in Rivers state between July and December 2020. We the People’s human rights accountability team recorded 31 incidents of atrocity in the period. The spate of killings reflects a general climate of insecurity and lawlessness which continues to highlight Rivers state in atrocious murders. Unfortunately,…
In Calabar the capital of Cross River state, southern Nigeria, hundreds of children, some as young as 6 live on the streets. These kids are exposed to the most horrendous conditions of existence, conditions that can only be described as atrocious. To survive each day, they depend only on what they can scavenge from refuse…
Between November 2019 and February 2020, there was noted rise in cases of killings in River state. The period witnessed attack on and by law enforcement officers, gang killings and random murders. This report details the killings and makes a profound demand for accountability.
WTP: Could you introduce yourself sir and tell us a bit about the work you have done with street children in Calabar? WilliamsArikpo: My name is Williams Arikpo. I started working with street children in 2003, I did a head count and found more than 300 children on the streets of Calabar. I have a…
In September 2019, gang criminality continued to rise in River state. The month witnessed attack on Police officers, politically motivated killings and inter communal murders. However, the most bizarre of the killings were those by a serial killer(s) following a pattern of murders targeting women in hotels in Rivers state. In the month of September…
In the last three months, at least 10 women have been killed in Rivers state in disturbing circumstances. This Briefing Note presents contextual analysis of these murders including current responses, as well as options and recommendations to the government and the Police to address this emergent problem.
In the 31-day period of August 2019, there were 10 documented incidents of atrocity in Rivers state that resulted in 45 killings. This figure is more than double that of the previous month, indicating a further descent into insecurity in parts of the state. The spate of killings reflects a general climate of insecurity and…
Between the 19th of August and the 3rd of September 2019, Agnes Callamard, United Nations Special Rapporteur for Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions conducted an official country visit to Nigeria. For 12 days, she examined situations of violations of the right to life by State and non-State actors; the Federal State security strategy and the…
In the last decade, there has been a tremendous increase in the number of children living in the streets of Calabar. These kids are exposed to the most horrendous conditions including forced labour and regular physical abuses. To survive each day, these kids depend only on what they can scavenge from refuse dumps, leftovers at…
The month of July 2019 saw further reduction in cases of atrocious killings in Rivers state. The month also witnessed important interventions by the state government to address the problem of insecurity in the state as well as atrocious killings. In the 31-day period of July 2019, We the People tracked and documented 11 incidents…
In response to the ongoing routine mass killings in Rivers state, We the People on Tuesday, 2nd July 2019, held a consultative Town Hall Meeting aimed at jointly exploring opportunities for ending the killing and securing accountability and closure for the victims and their families.
We the People and the Rivers state branch of the National Orientation Agency have resolved to work together to end violent killings in Rivers state, and expose corruption in the state. The two organizations met on Friday 12th July 2019 at the office of the NOA.
In The News
