#EndSARS Protesters
#EndSARS: Lagos assembly committee commends council chairmen’s resilience
Member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mr AdbulSobur Olawale, has commended the Executive Chairman of Ajeromi Local Government, LG, Mr. Fatai Ayoola, management and staff members for the resilience to rebuild the Secretariat that was destroyed during the aftermath of the ENDSARS protest. Olawale, who is also the Chairman of, House Committee on Local Government and Community Relations, disclosed that the Secretariat was among those government facilities that were destroyed by hoodlums during the aftermath of the ENDSARS protest. In the same view, the lawmaker applauded Council Chairman of Ifelodun Local Council Development Area, LCDA, Mr Shaibu Ajidagba for building the legislative chamber during his tenure in office. Speaking with journalists, after the oversight function to both Aje...
#EndSARS: Lagos hires forensic team to investigate Lekki toll gate shooting
The Lagos State government has hired a team to conduct an independent forensic examination of the Lekki toll gate. Nigerian soldiers attacked peaceful #EndSARS protesters at the toll gate on October 20, 2020 after weeks of demonstrations against police brutality. Soldiers fired on the protesters after the declaration of a curfew, leading to a yet-to-be-determined number of fatalities disputed by the government. A judicial panel of inquiry investigating the incident revealed during a sitting on Tuesday, January 5, 2021 that the Lagos government has paid a forensic team to aid the investigation. Chairperson of the panel, Justice Doris Okuwobi, announced this after the Lekki Concession Company (LCC) repeated a request that it be allowed to retake control of the toll gate which was vandalised ...
Lekki shooting: CNN objects to Lagos panel’s invitation
Cable News Network, Inc. (CNN) has protested against its invitation by the Lagos Judicial Panel of Inquiry to appear before it on Saturday, December 12, 2020, (today), over the alleged killing of peaceful #EndSARS protesters by soldiers in October. The news outfit said the panel does not have the jurisdiction to summon its staff to testify before it because they are not in Nigeria. The panel had invited CNN following its two-part report on the Lekki shooting incident. The report had claimed that Nigerian soldiers shot at and killed peaceful #EndSARS protesters on the night of October 20 at the Lekki toll gate, Lagos. According, the objection file by CNN’s Lawyers, Messrs. Olumide Babalola LP and dated 4th December 2020 at the Tribunal on December 9, 2020, stated that the panel is bereft of...
Senator Omo-Agege: Why National Assembly cannot produce new constitution for Nigeria
Deputy President of Senate Ovie Omo-Agege has declared that the National Assembly has no power to replace the current constitution with new one. Omo-Agege’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Yomi Odunuga, in a statement on Wednesday said the deputy senate president made the remark when he hosted members of the Alliance of Nigerian Patriots led by Amb. Umunna Orjiako. Omo-Agege, who is Chairman, Senate Ad hoc Committee on Constitution Review, said the National Assembly had no powers to replace the current constitution, but could only amend it. He cited advanced democracies, such as the U.S., where Nigeria’s presidential system of government was modelled after and sections 8 and 9 of the 1999 Constitution as amended to buttress his argument. The lawmaker said what was only obtainabl...
#EndSARS: Our losses can’t be quantified – LCC
As the probe into the shooting at the Lekki Toll Gate continues, the panel set up by the state government to look into the incident has been told by Mr Abayomi Omomuwa, managing director, Lekki Concession Company, operator of the tollgate, that he could not quantify the losses when the toll gate was occupied by #EndSARS protesters in October. Omomuwa also told the panel that contrary to insinuations, the toll gate was owned by private investors until 2014 when the Lagos State Government acquired it 100 per cent. Omomuwa who disclosed this while under cross-examination by a counsel for some #EndSARS protesters, Mr Adesina Ogunlana, said, “I believe that is the business of the company, not something to discuss in public.” When pressed further by Ogunlana, the LCC MD said, “It is obvious, whe...
Abuja court remands six protesters in custody
File Photo A magistrate in Abuja has remanded six detained protesters in custody on ‘trumped up charges,’ according to their lawyer. Newmen earlier reported that a small group of protesters were attacked by security forces at the National Assembly as they were rounding off their protest demanding widespread governmental reforms. Six protesters were arrested, including five males and one female. Human rights lawyer Tope Akinyode, who is defending the accused, told newsmen that the protesters were being held on “allegations of unlawful assembly and wanting to distort the societal peace.” “Of course, those are clearly trumped up charges because the protesters protested in accordance with the law,” he said. The magistrate in charge of their case decided to strike out the lawyer’s oral applicat...
Lekki shooting: CCTV stopped recording after 8pm – LCC chief
Lekki Concession Company (LCC) has said that CCTV cameras at Lekki Tollgate stopped working at 8p.m. on Oct. 20, the day military men alleged shot at unarmed #EndSARS protesters. Managing Director of LCC, Mr Abayomi Omomuwasi, made the disclosure while testifying during proceedings of Lagos #EndSARS Judicial Panel on Tuesday. Led in evidence by his lawyer, Mr Rotimi Seriki, Omomuwasi said that the cameras stopped working due to network issues. “We never tampered with the surveillance camera, that is why we have footage until 8 p.m. when it stopped recording. “It was around 8.p.m. that we did not get any CCTV recording. It stopped recording because of network issues with the system. “The major cause is that we have the network that connects our cameras together at Ikoyi Link Bridge, Chevron...
Northern governors back social media regulation
The Northern Governors Forum on Monday expressed support for proposals to regulate the social media to check the spread of fake news in the country. The Forum expressed its support in a communique issued by its Chairman and Governor of Plateau, Mr Simon Lalong. This followed the governors meeting in Kaduna, which was attended by traditional rulers and other key stakeholders in the region. The meeting took note of the devastating effect of the uncontrolled social media in spreading fake news and called for major control mechanisms andcensorship of social media practice in Nigeria. It also expressed support for the reform of the police to strengthen their capacity. “Forum appreciates the major reforms going on in the Police Force and pledges to support Mr. President on this course. “The meet...
Governor Okowa begs Nigerian government to revive Warri port in order to decongest Lagos
Delta Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, has called on the federal government to quickly resuscitate the Warri port, in order to curb unemployment in the state. The governor made the call at a town hall meeting with youths, including #ENDSARS protesters, civil society groups, students, social groups, community leaders and stakeholders across Delta South and Delta Central Senatorial Districts in Warri this week. He said that with the congestion of the ports in Lagos, the federal government should revive Warri port and other seaports in Delta State to boost the nation’s economy and create employment for the youths. He stated that the rate of unemployment in Nigeria is very high, and that checking unemployment is not just about employing people into public service. Okowa disclosed that to tackle the une...
#EndSARS: Over 17 police stations burnt in Lagos – official
The police in Lagos, on Friday, warned that the burning of several police stations across the state will lead to retrogression and a waste of money that could have been deployed to other projects. The police spokesperson in the state, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, gave the warning in an interview with newsmen in Lagos. “The implication of this is that money that has been set aside to do other projects and develop certain areas will have to be channeled into repairing these damaged stations.” He said that over 17 police formations across the state have been totally or partially razed by fire, set on them by thugs who infiltrated the #EndSARS protesters. “Also, it will make our work harder now because we will have to enhance our patrols in order to cover more grassroots areas that are normally covered ...
