Was the Lekki Tollgate Incident a Massacre?

Sam Akpologu

Introduction

Now that the report of the #EndSARS Judicial Panel of Inquiry (JPI) is finally in the public space, albeit that it is the leaked version, some antagonists of the #EndSARS movement have been trying to pick holes in the report. They claim that the inclusion of about two or three names in the list of those killed by the armed forces at Lekki Tollgate, was questionable. However, in my opinion, the proof of just one death is enough to destroy the case which they’ve peddles hitherto, and lends credence to the veracity of the #LekkiMassacre2020.

In the face of the evidence in support of the allegation of a massacre that the Government tried frantically to cover up, all that is required to prove the case of massacre is a corroboration. This is what the Government-setup Judicial Panel of Inquiry (JPI) has done. It has confirmed the killing of at least nine persons. Questioning the inclusion of three names out of the nine deceased persons named, does not detract from the case already established considering the following:

1. Uncontroverted Evidence of the Use of Military Grade Bullets

On the day of the unfortunate incident, DJ Switch posted a live video of the armed forces shooting at the Protesters. Now the JPI’s finding is that, without a doubt, live ammunition were fired at the defenceless Protesters. In fact, if only one live ammunition was recovered and confirmed to have been used at the site of the protest, it is enough to lend credence to the allegation that what was seen in the live video, was live ammunition being used against defenceless Protesters. Good enough, the evidence of the use of live ammunition was uncontroverted, rightly admitted by JPI, evaluated and ably relied upon to give credence to the conclusion reached by the JPI.

2. The Frantic but failed efforts by the Government to Conceal Evidence

The established and uncontroverted fact that sweepers were deployed to sweep the scene of crime before investigations could be allowed, speaks volumes in corroboration of the allegation of a massacre. In every adversarial system of adjudication, the fact of concealment of relevant evidence is resolved against the person concealing or attempting to conceal the evidence (especially where the availability of such evidence, would have been detrimental to the party concealing or attempting to conceal such facts/evidence). If the Government had nothing to hide, why was it sweeping a scene of crime before investigation? The juxtaposition of the allegation of a massacre, with the uncontroverted evidence of such untoward activity on its own, without more, is enough to prove to an objective and reasonable man that there was a massacre.

3. The Confirmed Deaths

If just one Lekki Tollgate death was confirmed, it shows that the shots seen in DJ Switch’s video were the unleashing of live ammunition, and they were fired at the crowd not in the air leading to the death of many people (the bodies of whom were allegedly carted away). Witnesses claimed to have seen the Military carting away bodies. The Military came for the Panel session. They couldn’t contradict those pieces of evidence. This again, lends credence to the allegation that a massacre took place at the Lekki Tollgate Plaza on October 20, 2020

Now, What is a Massacre?

It is “The killing of a considerable number (usually limited to people) where little or no resistance can be made, with indiscriminate violence, without necessity, and contrary to civilised norms” (http://wiktionary.org). No better scenario best fits the above definition of a massacre, than the firing live military grade ammunition at a crowd of harmless Protesters (while they were doing nothing but sitting on the ground, waiving the national flag and singing the national anthem), and killing them indiscriminately without recourse to any rule of engagement, such that at least nine (or six) persons were confirmed to have been killed in that exercise, while an unknown number of such slain persons were evidently concealed by the perpetrators.

It is therefore, too late in time to try to argue on behalf of the Government against the conclusion reached by the #JPI. Such arguments are puerile, infantile, unreasonable and unfortunately callous. It is even more otiose and a no-brainer, to hope to discredit the allegation of a massacre by trying to pick holes in the JPI’s report.

The JPI was a creation of the Government, which has been accused of trying to cover up its atrocities. It was so bad that even a member of its Panel, practically alleged sabotage and subterfuge. The present report would have been an opportunity for the Government to play to the gallery, and redeem its already battered image in this matter. This is an opportunity for the Government to prove to the world that it did set up the Panel, because it didn’t want to sweep the issue of #EndSARS under the carpet. It would have been another opportunity to bridge the gap, and douse the tension brewing in the polity. Unfortunately, when all a man knows how to use is a hammer, every problem would look like nail to him.

Sam Akpologu, Human Rights Lawyer, Lagos