Director’s death: Group seeks US, UK sanctions for Delta officials

The South-South Professionals, a coalition of academics, civil society leaders, diaspora advocates and professionals, including lawyers, medical doctors, business leaders, scientists, international relations experts and public policy specialists from Nigeria’s South-South region, has called on the United States Department of State, the United Kingdom Home Office, the European Union and Global Affairs Canada to impose visa restrictions on Delta State Government officials over the alleged killing of a senior civil servant.

The group specifically called for visa bans and the revocation of existing visas held by Delta State Government officials, including Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, Commissioner for Secondary Education, Dr Kingsley Ashibogwu, and other senior officials it alleged were implicated in violence, intimidation, obstruction of justice, threats to public safety and breaches of lawful order.

The SSP also called on other international jurisdictions across Asia, the Pacific, and North, Central and South America to consider similar measures against officials it said may be deemed inadmissible under their respective immigration laws.

The call followed what the SSP described as “a catastrophic breakdown of governance and human rights protections in Delta State,” culminating in the assault and subsequent death of Mr Unity Adeda, a Deputy Director in the Ministry of Secondary Education, inside government premises on September 25, 2026.

In a statement signed by the SSP National Publicity Secretary, Dr Augustine Edomonyi, in Benin City, the Edo State capital, where the organisation’s secretariat is located, the group described the alleged killing of Adeda as “not only the height of brutality by Delta State Government officials so far arrested and implicated in the murderous act,” but also as “most condemnable and totally unacceptable in every civilised society in the world.”

Citing what it described as multiple published eyewitness accounts, the SSP condemned the alleged assault on Adeda in the office of the Commissioner for Secondary Education, Dr Ashibogwu, following a disagreement with a senior official.

“Witnesses further allege that the commissioner ordered his official staff and political aides to beat the civil servant, who was tied up, beaten severely and left in a coma before being taken to hospital, where he died,” the statement said.

It added, “A photograph provided to SSP shows Mr Adeda alive but visibly brutalised, revealing the gravity of the incident. Police have since arrested some suspects, including the commissioner, and transferred the case to the Homicide Section of the State CID.”

The SSP said the Delta State Government responded with “political containment rather than accountability,” alleging that the government appointed a fact-finding panel instead of immediately suspending implicated officials and ensuring an independent criminal investigation.

While commending what it described as an unprecedented move by the Nigeria Labour Congress to shut down the entire Delta State Secretariat over concerns about the safety of workers, the SSP said Adeda’s death should be examined within what it described as a wider pattern of alleged state-enabled violence.

The SSP, citing what it described as an “escalating pattern of violence and impunity,” said it was concerned about the following incidents: The video-recorded assault of the governor’s Senior Special Assistant on Protocol, Simon Mudi, allegedly on the orders of the Commissioner for Works (Highways and Urban Roads), Reuben Izeze, who was later remanded in prison custody and subsequently reinstated after kneeling in apology.

The SSP described the situation as “thugocracy masquerading as governance,” warning that, in its view, Delta State had become unsafe for civil servants, opposition members and ordinary citizens.

The group therefore urged the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the European Union and other international jurisdictions in Asia, the Pacific, North, Central and South America to consider visa bans against Delta State Government officials and the revocation of existing visas where permitted under their respective laws.

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The SSP said the measures were necessary because, according to the organisation, the officials posed a grave threat to public safety, security and lawful order in international jurisdictions.

The SSP maintained that the alleged actions of the Delta State officials violated Sections 33 and 34 of the Nigerian Constitution, which guarantee the right to life and dignity of the human person.

It also argued that the alleged physical assault of a civil servant constituted serious misconduct under the Public Service Rules and could amount to manslaughter or murder under applicable criminal law.

The statement added: “No commissioner has the lawful power to punish a civil servant by beating him. No governor has the moral authority to shield officials implicated in fatal violence.”

While referencing Canada’s reported recent refusal of visas to Plateau State Government officials, including the state governor, the SSP urged Western countries, Asian and Pacific jurisdictions, the European Union and countries in the Americas to consider immediate visa bans and the revocation of existing visas for Governor Oborevwori, Dr Ashibogwu, implicated aides and, where legally applicable, their immediate family members.

The SSP said visa sanctions were “lawful, proportionate and necessary actions to deter further violence, prevent implicated Delta State Government officials from enjoying international sanctuary and privileges while ordinary citizens and law-abiding persons suffer at home.”

The SSP warned that “the death of Mr Unity Adeda is a stain on the conscience of the Nigerian state.”

“Delta State has become a danger to its own people, a danger to lawful indigenes and peaceful citizens of Nigeria, as well as foreigners who visit and have something to do with the state. Those who preside over violence must not enjoy the sanctuary of Western visa regimes,” the coalition said.

The group stressed that it was not asking foreign governments to prejudge the guilt of any individual, but to take measures to prevent impunity, protect evidence and ensure accountability.

It also urged foreign governments to ensure that international jurisdictions did not become “unsafe havens” for officials who, according to the coalition, pose threats to public safety, lawful order and security.

The SSP requested written confirmation from the recipient governments that the petition had been received and referred to the relevant human rights and sanctions units.

The press release was signed by Dr Augustine Edomonyi, on behalf of South-South Professionals.