The middle-aged man was said to have collected revenue and failed to remit the same to the government.
GSAC’s condemnation came on the heels of the outrage that trailed a viral video showing the torture.
In the video, the officials forced the man to sit on the floor as they repeatedly used a pestle and other objects to hit his ankles, chest, and shoulders, while ignoring his pleas for leniency.
President of GSAC, Frank Ezeona, described the action as “barbaric, primitive, and the height of lawlessness”.
He called on Governor Charles Soludo to rein in the activities of task force members working for his government and stop further brutalisation and harassment of residents under the guise of generating revenue for the state.
He said: “We want to say that Nigeria has, since, left this kind of jungle justice, where perpetrators of crimes and violators of the law are tried without being handed over to the appropriate agency of government set up by law.
“Assuming, without conceding that the young man was guilty as charged, was it right for these anti-touting officials to use a pestle and other objects they could lay hands on to dismember parts of his body? The law has prescribed appropriate sanctions against any offender, and no human is above the law. Section 36 (5) of the 1999 constitution recognised the fact of presumption of innocence until proven guilty and every public official, including governors, swore to protect and enforce it.
“This is not the first time members of a government-established task force will be manhandling hapless residents in the name of enforcing revenue generation and order in the state.”
Ezeona noted: “Countless times, business owners and occupants of residences are forcibly arrested commando style, beaten and detained in unhygienic facilities without trial in court or being handed over to the police for prosecution.”
Many have been made to pay various amounts of money to obtain their freedom from the hands of these officials.
“As much as we will not indulge in actions that could undermine good governance in Anambra State, we wish to call on the governor to, once again, look into the activities of members of the task force, with a view to ascertaining if they still operate within the confines of the law.
“He should also order an immediate investigation into the current video of jungle justice, with a view to arresting the trend, as well as bringing its perpetrators to book. This level of barbarism and primitive action against helpless residents of Anambra State must stop forthwith. It is time to engage residents with civility.”
