#EndSARS: Lekki Shooting Survivors Storm Judicial Panel, Demand Justice

Victims of the shooting incident at Lekki tollgate in Lagos on October 20, 2020,  on Friday bieseged the state’s Court of Arbitration.

Soldiers from Dodan barrack had invaded the Lekki toll-gate, the major protest ground, for the #EndSARS demonstration, on October 20 and allegedly opened fire on peaceful and unarmed protesters leaving, a yet to be ascertained number of persons dead and many serious injured.

The military has, however, denied using live rounds on the protesters, saying blank bullets were used in dispersing the the demonstrators.

During their visit to the judicial panel on Friday, the victims, led by Adesina Ogunlana, a lawyer, said they sustained injuries during the shooting and that what they wanted was justice.

Ogunlana recounted the experiences of the victims on the day #EndSARS protesters were forcefully dispersed.

Ogunlana said he was forced to bring the victims to the court because of the suit the police filed against the panel.

He added that the Lagos state government tried to forestall the victims’ visit to the panel and different tactics were deployed to achieve that but their entreaties did not bear fruit.

“It beholds in us to present the fact we know to the world. There’s been a deliberate effort by the agent of the government, specifically Lagos state government to run #EndSARS protesters down, either by inducement or by quack scene and not allow them come out to the panel,” he said.

“There are frantic efforts, I can say authoritatively, even over the weekend to prevent this action (protest) by their agents and their lawyers

“They got to know that we’re coming here (court of arbitration) to present and do this demonstration to show the world that actually people were shot at, that actually people were severely injured and that people actually died.

“There are contacts made to prevent this particular action and we refused it and we are saying you cannot compromise this level of atrocity. People were shot and attacked by security agencies including the Nigeria military and the police.

“This is the truth and if not that this matter was adjourned till December 11, 2020, we might not have done this… in the magnanimity of the panel, they considered that it is good to adjourn and it created a lull.

“There was fear on our part and reasonable fear too. There’s a deliberate intention to scrap this panel and armstrong it but way of illegal process.

“We were proved right when a suit came up two days ago and that the police themselves are asking that these panels to stop.

“We are in this struggle not only for the people that died, or the people suffering now but for the future of our children. Government must not continue with the culture of reckless impunity.”

The suit was withdrawn after Mohammed Adamu, inspector-general of police, complained about it publicly.

A spokesperson of the victims said: “We have people with amputated legs; we have people with brain surgery in this van; we have dozens of them that are yet to be discharged. This is from Lekki tollgate massacre 2020. We want justice. We don’t want to be silenced; we don’t want to be marginalised even in our own country.”