Lekki shootings: Army makes a U-turn, agrees to appears before Lagos panel
- The Nigerian Army has agreed to honour the invitation by the Lagos panel on EndSARS
- The Army had vowed that it would not appear before the panel
- According to the report, it would now appear before the panel on Saturday, November 7
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Days after turning down the invitation by the Lagos state panel of enquiry probing the alleged shooting of #EndSARS peaceful protesters on October 20, at the Lekki tollgate, the Nigerian Army has changed its stand.
PM News reports the Nigerian Army had earlier stated that it would not appear before the panel, arguing it was not the panel’s duty to invite it.
Legit.ng gathered that the spokesman for the Nigerian Army, 81 Division, Lagos, Major Osoba Olaniyi, said the military would only appear before the panel if it received an invitation directly from the Lagos state government rather than the panel.
Source: UGC
He said:
“If we receive a letter from the state, we will go. Are we not under civil authorities? Are we not part of Nigerians? Have you forgotten that we did not go there (Lekki tollgate) on our own?
“It is the state government that constituted that panel of inquiry. So, if anybody needs to get in touch with us to come, it is still the state, not the members.”
The online medium, however, noted that sources close to the retired Justice Doris Okuwobi-led panel confirmed on Thursday, November 5, that the Army had acknowledged the panel’s invitation.
It was also gathered that the panel had fixed Saturday, November 7, for the Army’s appearance at the hearing taking place at the Lagos Court of Arbitration, Lekki.
Quoting a source, the online media said the Nigerian Army seemed to have bowed to pressure in respect of the invitation to appear before the Lagos panel on SARS.
He said:
“You know the panel was set up with the approval of the National Executive Council and President Muhammadu Buhari has always assured Nigerians and indeed the international community of full cooperation with the panel, so the Army cannot afford to ignore the invitation from the panel duly signed by its chairperson, who is a judicial officer."
According to the report, the spokesman for 81 Division of the Nigerian Army, Osoba Olaniyi, declined to comment on the invitation when he was contacted.
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Meanwhile, Legit.ng had previously reported that the request by the Lekki Concession Company (LCC) to take possession of the tollgate was turned down by the panel set up by the government of Lagos to probe police brutality in the state.
It was reported that the LCC suspended activities at the toll plaza after the shooting of EndSARS protesters on October 20.
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Source: Legit.ng
