Nigerians Warn against Padding of #EndSARS Panel Report

Emma Okonji and Nosa Alekhuogie

Following the recent release of the report of the Judicial Panel of Enquiry on the Lagos #EndSARS protest, which indicted the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Police Force and the Lekki Concession Company (LCC), Nigerians, including a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), have called on Lagos State government not to tamper with the report..

They warned that any attempt by Lagos government to pad the report would further widen the gap of distrust that already exists between the people the government.

Reacting to the four-man committee constituted by the Lagos State government to further look into the report with a view to developing a government whitepaper on the report, Nigerians said the committee members must not change the recommendations of the panel and must review the report line by line, without making additional recommendations.

This is just as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Femi Okunnu, has advised well-meaning Nigerians to exercise patience regarding the reports being circulated.

The SAN, who spoke yesterday on the Morning Show of ARISE NEWS Channel, the broadcast arm of THISDAY Newspapers, called on everybody to wait for the official government copy duly signed by the chairman of the panel, Justice Doris Okuwobi and the other members of the panel, noting that it will be the only authentic report of the panel.

According to him, government cannot doctor the report because members of the panel have their own signed copies.

“ The report should be published and presented to the public in full whether or not it criticizes the federal government, Lagos State Government, the army, or the police. The purpose of the white paper is for the government to set out its own views of the report and not to argue with the panel. It will speak volume if it accepts or rejects the panel’s recommendations. Also, it is not to rewrite a report, it is to set out government’s views of the panel report and what it intends to do, and all these must be in a public glare,” he said.

Okunnu, however, called on the press to be at alert to ensure that the government publishes the report in full.

“ We should have confidence that the government will not dare to doctor either volume one or volume two of the report,” he added.Counsel to the #EndSARS protesters at the Judicial panel, Mr. Adesina Ogunlana, who also spoke yesterday on the Morning Show of ARISE NEWS Channel, commended the panel for conducting its self honorably.

According to Ogunlana, Lagos State government was under trial as the reports has been presented and it is now up to them whether they could abide by the recommendations of a panel that they set up.

Ogunlana said: “Asides from compensation, you should prosecute by yourself instead of going to United Nations or any other body which I don’t support as it’s a problem created by Nigerians in Nigeria. So, let Nigerians deal with it responsibly and honorably.”

The youth representative on the same panel, Mr. Temitope Majekodunmi, who was also a guest on the Morning Show of ARISE NEWS Channel yesterday, debunked the rumour about two reports being in circulation in respect to the Lekki investigation, explaining that there are only two standard reports, the one in respect to the investigation of police brutality in general, and the investigation of the Lekki report.

He further stated that the only report was that, which had been submitted to the appointing authority on the 15th, November 2021.

“The leaked report was worrisome but also, it only speaks to more accountability. The contents of the leaked report is not far from the original report. The findings, recommendations and executive summary are the same. I am confident and bold to say that the panel was fair and just as the report only speaks to our level of independence and this has been done without being biased. The panel was saddled with the responsibility to restore peace and hope in the society and that is what this report has confirmed,” Majekodunmi further said.