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The decision of the Lagos State Judicial Panel allowing Lekki Concession Company to reopen the Lekki tollgate, where Nigerian forces opened fire on unarmed protesters last October has generated various reactions from many youths who have taken to social media threatening to stage a massive protest on February 13.
While some are opposed to the handing over of the toll gate back to LCC for repairs and to begin operations, others are speaking in favour of the ruling.
Last Saturday, the nine-man panel set up by the Lagos State government to investigate the October 2020 Lekki shooting voted 5-4 in favor of the handover.
Those who opposed the reopening were representatives of #ENDSARS protesters, Temitope Majekodunmi and Rinuola Oduola as well as Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa and Patience Udoh, representing the civil society.
LCC, through its counsel, had been praying to the panel to enable it to take over the plaza for repair and insurance claims since December 2020.
Vexed by the decision of the panel, many social media users, especially on Twitter, has since Sunday night pushed, shared, and reshared graphics, tweets with the hashtag #OccupyLekkiTollGate mobilising and threatening another protest on Saturday at the Lekki toll gate.
The hashtag was number one on Nigeria’s Twitter trend table for several hours on Monday.
They called out the panel for approving the release of the toll gate while an investigation is ongoing, while others are angry that the government has not owned up to the killing of unarmed protesters, who marched against police brutality on the night of October 20.
But they got more determined in the face of resistance by Monday night with the emergence of another hashtag ‘#DefendLagos’, which appears to oppose the purported protest.
The promoters express plans for a counter-protest planned for Saturday at Lekki toll plaza. They also lamented that Lagos State witnessed massive destruction of public and private properties during the #EndSARS protests, further arguing that the protest will lead to destruction and will not be tolerated.
Earlier, the panel said the toll plaza could not be handed over as a forensic expert has been paid by the Lagos state government to examine the toll gate as it concerns the October 20 shooting incident.
In January 5 sitting, Doris Okuwobi, the panel chairperson, said the government has paid a forensic expert to examine the scene of the Lekki shooting and LCC needs to wait for the forensic examination results.
“Forensic evidence is most needed in this inquiry,” Okuwobi said.
The matter was adjourned till February 6 as the forensic report was to be ready on February 2.
However, on Saturday, instead of the report of the forensic examination is read during the sitting, the judge made no comment on the forensic report, while the LCC was allowed to go on with its application.
Okuwobi, said the forensic report is ready and the panel is satisfied “but would not wait till the termination of the petitions before it hands over control of Lekki to LCC”.
“To put the record straight, it is the jurisdiction of this panel to investigate the incident of October 2020 and make recommendations is the premise by which the panel must comply with jurisdiction to look into the Lekki case.
“The Lekki toll plaza is considered the seat of event of that day. This panel has given ample opportunity to all petitioners to access the toll plaza with the view to considering the investigation.”
After the panel’s chair ruling, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and member of the panel, Ebun Adegboruwa, led three other members to oppose the ruling of the judge.
Adegboruwa, Patience Udoh (lawyer and human rights activist), and the two representatives of the youth, Rinuola Oduola and Temitope Majekodunmi, said the decision of the judge and other members of the panel does not represent theirs.
Adegboruwa said the handover of the plaza at this time “is hasty, premature and will overreach the work and eventual recommendations of the panel.”
“Investigation by the panel over the Lekki Tollgate incident is still ongoing, it will therefore be premature to hand over the plaza that is still subject of panel’s investigation and proceedings, to LCC,” he said.
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