October 20, 2020 is one day Nigerians will never forget in a hurry and have chosen to immortalized.
The world’s most populous black nation was plunged into mourning and confusion following an alleged shooting of #ENDSARS protesters at the Lekki Tollgate in Lekki, Lagos state.
The shooting was allegedly carried out by operatives of the Nigerian Army in a bid to stop the youths from protesting against police brutality.
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Daily Report recalls that Nigerian youths across the country had in October 2020, embarked on peaceful nationwide protests over extrajudicial killings by the defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS.
However, at minutes before 7pm on October 20, 2020, the officers reportedly opened fire on the unarmed protesters, who converged at the Lekki Tollgate, leading to the death of several innocent citizens.
Amnesty International reported that over 12 protesters peaceful protesters were killed by the Nigerian military.
The incident drew more criticism when authorities denied that the incident ever happened.
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State admitted that only two persons died from the incident a day after.
The federal government led by President Muhammadu Buhari vehemently denied that the incident ever happened, citing the lack of evidence to support the claims.
Two years after, some Nigerians have continued to lament that the victims of the Lekki massacre were yet to get justice.
On Air Personality, James Idoko, who spoke with Daily Post, lamented that despite video and photo evidence, the government insisted there were no killings at the Lekki Tollgate, even as many victims are yet to get justice.
Idoko said;
“This APC regime is the worst thing that happened to this country. First, they don’t value human lives, they do whatever they want. The way the government is handling the current insecurity has justified that the Lekki massacre was orchestrated. Life means nothing to them.
“Even when CNN and other foreign media platforms revealed that people were massacred in that incident, these archaic people still insist it never happened. What a government. May the souls of the fallen heros continue to rest with the Lord.”
On his part, a social media influencer, Vicky James noted that the some politicians who orchestrated the shooting would be taught a big lesson in the forthcoming elections.
Vicky said;
“In 2020, they acted like they didn’t need us. Tinubu flew out of Nigeria shortly after the incident. There is a saying which says that ‘a clear conscience fears no judgement’. Why was he running? And till today, what has he said about it?
“They killed innocent people who are demanding for something that is their right. The police abused us and we said no, we decided to stage a peaceful protest and they decided to kill all of us”.
The National Coordinator, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, Emmanuel Onwubiko noted that the CCTV camera at the toll gate were deliberately removed
Emmanuel further said that officials at the Lekki Tollgate ought to have been arrested.
He said;
“Operators of the Lekki Tollgate, what they did was that they put off the CCTV camera and they were cut on camera while doing that. That itself is a public crime. And the people who did that are yet to be charged.
“The government and the military have not actually admitted that people were killed in that incident even when video evidence revealed that a lot of Nigerians were killed.
“There are a lot of questions regarding the Lekki incident that the government is yet to answer. But we believe that one day, there will be a government that will want accountability because even if it takes a hundred years, a crime committed cannot be washed off.
“Those who are in government today, if they think that they are going to escape it, they are making a lot of mistakes. Some of the panels that were set up after the incident did well but not excellent because so many victims of police brutality were not compensated.”
