News
Lekki Shooting: We Treated 6 People With Gunshot Wounds, Says Reddington Doctor
No fewer than six persons were treated for various gunshot wounds at Reddington hospital in the aftermath of shooting of #EndSARS protesters at the Lekki toll-gate in October 20, 2020, Babajide Lawson, a doctor at the medical facility, disclosed on Saturday.
Lawson said the facility nearly buckled beneath the ”mass casualty” it was overwhelmed with in the wake of the shooting.
Lawson, a trauma and orthopaedic surgeon at Reddington hospital, made the disclosure while giving his testimony before the Lagos judicial panel on police brutality on Saturday.
While being cross examined by Olumide Fusika and Adesina Ogunlana, the two lawyers representing victims of the shooting, Lawson said six persons with varying gunshot wounds were treated at the Victoria Island branch of the hospital.
Fusika had asked: ”Go through the medical reports and confirm if it’s from Reddington and whether they are people you know.”
In his response, Lawson said: “Yes, it’s our medical report. I don’t know them personally but I know them as patients that I treated.”
“Being in charge of trauma, it means that anybody that is involved in traumatic injuries such as accident and gunshots must go through me in both of our locations”
Lawson said, in the days that followed the incident, more victims of the shooting were brought to the hospital and the number patients increased.
“On that 20th, a lot of the patients were treated at the Lekki office. Later on the night of 20th, I also went to the Lekki office to assess the level of assistance needed in my capacity and I also spoke with the MD of that branch. That night, I transferred a patient to the VI office which is our headquarters where I work from and where he stayed till the 23rd.
“On the first night, there are about six patients that I saw at that night, but as the day goes by, other patients trickled in.”
When asked why a medical report was not issued to one Samuel Oshola, who was also treated at the hospital alongside others who were victims of the Lekki shooting despite presenting evidence of being treated at Reddington.
Lawson responded by saying: “We witnessed what we can call ‘mass casualty’ that overwhelmed our facilities because a lot of people with varying degrees of gunshot wounds were being brought into the hospital for treatment on October 20 and days after it.
“However, if the person is requesting for a report, we would check the treatment files and file a medical report.”
The names of victims whom Lawson confirmed that he treated personally for gunshot wounds as a result of the Lekki shooting are: Ajogwu Japheth, Philemon Lucky, Samuel Oshola, Nnaji Madem, Bright Osariemen, Damilola Adedayo and Joshua Samuel.
Lawson disclosed that he did not treat Joshua Samuel personally, but that a cardiothoracic surgeon did because a bullet shell logged close to his vital organs. He said he only assessed him and made recommendations.
He also said the victims treated at the Lekki branch of the hospital will be confirmed by one Opakunle, a doctor who was in charge at the time of the incident, when she comes to testify before the panel on February 15, 2021.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE:
#EndSARS: We Are Working With Panels To Make Ethical Changes – Police
#EndSARS: DJ Switch Cries Out In Exile, Says ‘She Is A Fugitive’
#EndSARS: There’s Nothing We Can Do If Army Declines Our Summons – Lagos Judicial Panel
Advertise or Publish a Story on EkoHot Blog:
Kindly contact us at [email protected]. Breaking stories should be sent to the above email and substantiated with pictorial evidence.
Citizen journalists will receive a token as data incentive.
Call or Whatsapp: 0803 561 7233, 0703 414 5611
