By Ismail Auwal
The Speaker of the House of Representative, Femi Gbajabiamila has confirmed the death of a newspaper vendor shot by one of his security aides on Thursday.
Gbajabiamila in a statement released in the early hours of Friday, explained that the vendor was hit by a stray bullet meant to disperse a crowd when he went to greet the newspaper vendors while leaving the National Assembly.
“A horrible incident has taken place. This evening as I left the national assembly, I stopped, as usual, to exchange pleasantries with the newspaper vendors at the corner,” he stated.
The Lagos lawmaker narrated that some hours after they got to their destination, he was informed that the victim simply identified as Ifeanyi had been hit by a stray bullet.
He said this was “contrary to an earlier report by men in the convoy that they applied their security discretion to shoot in the air.
“In the meantime; the officer who fired the fatal shot has been suspended from the convoy pending the conclusion of the investigation.”
While sending his condolences to the family of the deceased, the Speaker expressed distraught about the incident.
“For one of them (vendors) to have been shot by my security detail is horrific and I cannot begin to imagine the grief and loss Ifeanyi’s family must feel on this sad day. No family should have to go through this,” he added.
“I have caused a report to be made to the local police station and an investigation has commenced.”
“My value for human life and my respect for all people – irrespective of social-economic status – is what endeared me to these vendors and these are the reasons why I stop my convoy quite often to connect with them.”