Nigerian politicians are demanding their country’s government intervene in the police shooting of George Nkencho, who has been presented as a something of an Irish George Floyd in recent days, near Dublin.
Nkencho, 27, is said to have been involved in two incidents involving a knife at a shopping centre and a Eurospar convenience store, the latter of which left the store manager hospitalised with “facial injuries”, on December 30th.
Officers of the Garda Síochána — “Guardians of the Peace” — followed Nkencho back to his family home, ultimately shooting him dead after he allegedly lunged at them with a knife.
The failure of officers to detain Nkencho without the use of deadly force has caused considerable anger in the African diaspora community, despite police insisting they were left with no choice after efforts to subdue him via Taser and pepper spray were unsuccessful.
U.S.-style ‘Black Lives Matter’ and ‘Justice for George’ ptotests over the shooting, sometimes violent, are now receiving the tacit support of senior politicians in Nigeria.
“I call on the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Geoffrey Onyeama, and the Nigeria High Commission in Ireland not to leave any stone unturned in the investigation of the true circumstances surrounding that most dastardly act by a member of the police force in [Ireland],” declared Rep. Yusuf Buba, Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs in Nigeria’s House of Representatives.
“The souls of several Nigerian nationals have in many countries of the world been senselessly sacrificed on the altar of sheer hatred and mere fear born out of suspicion of Nigerians abroad,” he alleged.
“I therefore call on the Federal Government to join efforts with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to ensure that anyone behind this latest act of recklessness does not go unpunished.”
Tensions are high following the shooting, with Nkencho’s younger brother Emmanuel appearing to threaten the officer who killed him at a protest.
“I want that fed, whoever he was, that shot him, I want him terminated… I want him finished, because, just know, Garda, when we find him, yeah? Just know,” he told cheering protesters in a video which has gone largely unreported by the Irish press.
The Garda, or Guards, are said to be “aware” of the video but hesitant to act, as “emotions are running high and that the family and friends of the man who died are of course very upset”.
They are also concerned about apparently false claims circulating online about George Nkencho having a lengthy criminal record, as “these things stoke the fires of racial tension.”
Nkencho’s family say he had mental health issues, and that they made officers aware of this.
The Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) is investigating the incident.