Irish Examiner view: Family of George Nkencho meet justice minister Helen McEntee

The family met the minister with their solicitor to raise concerns about the Gsoc investigation into the death of George and the need for a comprehensive, independent inquiry

Gloria Nkencho, sister of George Nkencho, spoke to the media in Clonee, Dublin, following a meeting with Justice Minister Helen McEntee. icture: Sam Boal / RollingNews.ie

The family of George Nkencho, shot dead by gardaí on December 30, met justice minister Helen McEntee on Wednesday. 

The private meeting took place at the Nkencho family home in Clonee, Dublin 15, four and a half months after the 27-year-old was shot by an armed officer while wielding a knife in his front garden. 

Investigators from the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (Gsoc) have now taken accounts from all material witnesses, including the armed garda who fired the fatal shots, but questions remain unanswered.

It is not clear what the minister will have been able to say to the bereaved family, apart from offering her condolences. 

She may not be able to address fully their grievances, but meeting the family at their home is a welcome recognition that their concerns and the wider implications of the tragedy are being taken seriously at the highest level.

“The family are meeting the minister with their solicitor to raise concerns about the Gsoc investigation and the need for a comprehensive, independent inquiry, as well as their desire for a genuine forum to be established of gardaí and the communities they police to prevent racial or other biases,” a statement from a family representative said.

George Nkencho’s family — and Ireland’s African community, in general — have shown great restraint when voicing their grievances, notwithstanding the unfortunate circumstances in which his mother was brought to the ground in a melee with gardaí on Wednesday of last week in a part of west Dublin. 

Several gardaí became involved in a confrontation with Blessing Nkencho and a 16-year-old black youth. 

Nothing can bring back the life of George Nkencho. 

Nothing can recall the six bullets that entered his body, and there is probably nothing that can take away the sadness of his family. 

But what can be done is that the gardaí and the Government address with urgency the concerns voiced by the Nkencho family. 

The fear is that his death and its aftermath will further damage the gardaí’s relations with black people in Ireland. 

We have seen this happen among police forces in the United States and the ensuing violent protests have been hard to watch, let alone endure.

The family is unhappy with the pace and transparency of the Gsoc investigation; that must be addressed. They want an independent inquiry; that needs to be considered — goodness knows, we have had inquiries over lesser matters. 

They want a forum set up between the gardaí and communities they police to prevent bias; that should be a given because it is important that justice is not only done but is seen to be done.

A more immediate goal is to work on relations with African and other minority communities throughout Ireland, and in particular in west Dublin where anger among many residents is palpable. 

The once strong relationship between the gardaí and African families in the area is all but shattered. 

Garda diversity officers have been engaging with community leaders in recent weeks but what is needed is not a system of ‘managing’ this tragedy, but a real and ongoing engagement with people on the ground. A meeting of minds — not force.