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By Casmir Igbokwe
Alhaji Lai Mohammed tells a lot of stories. That is not surprising. As Minister of Information and Culture, he has to promote and defend the policies and programmes of the government. This is how I see his intervention on the report of the Lagos State Judicial Panel of Enquiry on Restitution for Victims of SARS Related Abuses and Other Matters.
At a recent press conference, Mohammed fumed: “Without mincing words, let me say never in the history of any judicial panel in this country has its report been riddled with so many errors, inconsistencies, discrepancies, speculations, innuendoes, omissions and conclusions that are not supported by evidence.”
He added: “Instead of sitting for one year, the panel could have just compiled social media ‘tales by the moonlight’ on the incident and submitted, saving taxpayers’ funds and everyone’s time. The report is nothing but the triumph of fake news and the intimidation of a silent majority by a vociferous lynch mob.”
Recall that soldiers allegedly shot and killed scores of unarmed protesters at Lekki Tollgate area of Lagos on Tuesday, October 20, 2020. It was dubbed Black Tuesday. Before the alleged shootings, there had been protests across different parts of the country against police brutality especially by the defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS). The #EndSARS protests were later hijacked by some hoodlums who killed policemen and burnt down some public buildings.
Some state governments set up panels of enquiry to investigate the crisis. The Lagos State panel led by Justice Doris Okuwobi submitted its report to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Monday, November 15, 2021. The panel investigated two major petitions. One is on several abuses and killings by the Nigerian police, especially the defunct SARS. The second one is on the October 20, 2020 Lekki Tollgate shootings during the EndSARS protests. Soon after the submission of the report, some aspects of it leaked to the public. The panel, among others, confirmed that indeed there were shootings at Lekki and that at least nine people died and some others sustained injuries. It awarded a total of N410 million to 70 victims of police brutality.
This is what riled the information minister. He had consistently maintained that there was no killing by soldiers at Lekki on the day in question. So, it would mean that he lied if he agreed with the panel’s findings. But he obviously jumped the gun in his haste to defend soldiers and the government. His principal, President Muhammadu Buhari, did the correct thing by adopting the attitude of “let’s wait and see.” He told the United States Secretary of States, Anthony Blinken, who visited him recently, that he would await the report of other states that also set up panels before concluding on the matter.
The question is: on whose behalf did Lai Mohammed reject the report of the Lagos panel? He claimed he studied the report and spotted discrepancies before coming out to disparage it. But couldn’t he have waited for the report of the four-member committee set up by the Lagos State Government to raise White Paper on the panel report? It means he does not trust Sanwo-Olu who pledged that the two reports and recommendations would be made public and submitted to the National Economic Council (NEC) for discussion.
The sad part of this whole thing is that there appears to be a subtle campaign by some government agents to discredit the report of the panel. Besides, a human rights lawyer and member of the panel, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN), alleged that there were threats to the lives of members of the panel. Also, one Miss Kamsiyochukwu Ibe, who testified at the panel, was also reported to have been attacked and given machete cuts recently by hoodlums. Adegboruwa urged Nigerians to hold the government responsible should anything happen to him.
My fear now is that Nigerians may never get to know the truth about the Lekki incident. With the overt and covert moves surrounding the report, there may not be justice after all. The report of the committee on white paper appears predetermined. I wish I am proved wrong.
It is typical of many Nigerians to confuse issues in order to hide the truth. It happened in the alleged Lekki incident. At first, the army denied ever being at the scene of the shooting. It said the viral videos of the shooting could have been photo-shopped. In a contradictory statement, the same army said soldiers intervened on the request of the Lagos State Government after a 24-hour curfew was imposed. It claimed its intervention followed all laid down procedures for internal security operations and that its personnel never opened fire on the protesters.
Even Governor Sanwo-Olu prevaricated on the incident. Initially, he blamed the shootings on forces beyond his control. According to him, he called President Buhari two times, but got no response. Though he admitted that soldiers carried out the shootings, Sanwo-Olu initially said no death was recorded. He later noted that only two people died.
It is imperative to note that military intervention in civilian protests always leads to disastrous consequences. In 1989, for instance, Chinese military rolled out tanks in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square and massacred hundreds of peaceful protesters, mostly students, demanding democratic reforms.
In Egypt, an attempt by the military to quash the Egyptian Revolution of 2011 led to the killing of over 800 demonstrators. Over 6000 others were injured. In the late 80s, people trooped to the streets of Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, to protest austerity measures imposed by the government. The then President Carlos Andrés Pérez declared martial law and invited the military. Characteristically, the soldiers reportedly killed at least 400 civilians.
As regards the alleged Lekki massacre, the onus is on the Lagos State Government to maintain neutrality and stand on the side of truth. If it had wanted a report that would be favourable to government, it wouldn’t have constituted an independent panel made up of independent-minded and credible individuals.
What Nigerians need now is a healing process. Victims of police brutality need to be consoled and compensated. Rule of law is the hallmark of democracy. That is what differentiates our democracy from that of some advanced nations. When security agents commit atrocities with impunity, society suffers for it. Even with the EndSARS protests of last year, our security agents appear not to have learnt any lesson. Motorists and travellers still face inhuman and degrading treatment in the hands of these agents. Indeed, a leopard cannot change its spots.
What Lai Mohammed should do is to continue to push for police and military reforms in their Federal Executive Council meetings. He should caution himself against telling stories that will further alienate Nigerians from the government. He should begin now to compose better tales that will calm nerves over the proposed fuel subsidy removal next year. Above all, he should always consult with the Presidency before dishing out his comments on controversial issues so that government won’t be seen to be contradicting itself.
Re: Andy Uba’s ‘stolen mandate’
The agitation of Andy Uba against the transparent and landslide victory of Soludo over him is like the case of two wrestlers: the stronger one threw the other on the ground without much sweat but the one down said his head has not touched the ground. The ex-Senator should gently tuck his tail between his hind and await future opportunities.
•Hon Aloy Uzoekwe, uroyz94@gmail.com, 08038503174.
Dear Casmir, I congratulate the governor-elect Prof Charles Soludo on his overwhelming victory at the polls. The result of the election and the example shown by Mrs Eunice Ngozi Onuegbusi testify to how advanced the Anambra state electorate has become. Now that the battle is over, the task before the governor-elect is to prove that purposeful and effective leadership that has hitherto eluded the country over the years could be achieved by putting intellectuals at the helm of affairs.
•Dr Idongesit Inyang, Uyo, +2348084318845.
Dear Casy, Soludo’s victory is in line with the adage which says that a genuine product is an easy sell. It is also a Divine re-calibration of Anambra State’s political trajectory right from Dr Chris Ngige as Governor who was abducted for his refusal to obey the 11th Commandment which says: ‘thou shall set aside the lion share of State’s funds to maintain political godfathers.’ As for the man allegedly heading for court, note that politicians with strong ‘cash and carry’ spirit, hardly, reconcile with DIVINE DICTATION. Such spirit leads them to desperation and when desperation attains a crescendo, reasonableness takes flight, decency gets buried.
•Steve Okoye, Awka, 08036630731.
The Eighth Wonder of transforming a man into a woman is only possible in Nigeria’s electoral clime because the electorate’s sacred and unfettered mandate of determining who emerges as governor of a state is now the ‘prerogative’ of the Supreme Court. The Hope Uzodimma’s Imo State abracadabra is now the next magic wand that Andy Uba hangs on to govern a people who decisively and resoundingly rejected him at the poll. The resultant ‘punishment’ occasioned by the BIG LIE posted by Andy Uba’s 200,000 votes purportedly garnered at APC guber primary is a clear warning to all the electoral magicians that the times are gradually changing for the better.
•Edet Essien Esq. Cal South, 08037952470
Nobody stole his mandate. The real identity of a man is not measured by performance or money, but relationship. Relationship is wealth in waiting. Those who let things happen usually lose to those who make things happen.
•Emma Wuse 2 Abuja, +2348035585109
Dear Casy, the political cabal in Anambra state who stole Peter Obi and APGA mandate in 2003, 2007 guber elections are now crying wolf over Prof Soludo’s victory. When they robbed Obi, they didn’t know that the law of karma was waiting for the right time. Obasanjo’s electoral abracadabra at the time turned them emperors in the state. The people of Anambra had made their best choice and God has blessed the great Prof and his people. The society you abuse today haunts your generation in the future.
•Eze Chima C. Lagos, +2347036225495
Casmir, the election tribunal was set up on purpose. An aggrieved candidate in an election is free to pursue justice should he feel that there were malpractices during the election strong enough to influence the result of the election. This right should not be denied Andy Uba. Seeking justice at the tribunal is better than the alternative which is violence. This can only strengthen the democratic process in Anambra.
•Mike, Mushin, Lagos , +2348161114572
Casmir, I love Ndi Anambra State. Starting from the reign of Gov Ngige, through Peter Obi to Dr Willie Obiano, they have fashioned out the standard for their governors. Unfortunately, Andy Uba has not learnt anything from the past. He refused to admonish himself that his fake assumptions of his quality can never blindfold Ndi Anambra State to entrust the leadership of the State to him. He has not told himself the truth on the claim of securing 200,000 votes in APC primary election. He failed to realize that APGA might have played along with him by commissioning some of its members to pretend to be working for him but actually worked for Soludo.
•Pharm Okwuchukwu Njike, +234 803 885 4922
Dear Casmir, It is unfortunate that Andy Uba who was deceived by those APGA members, who defected on the eve of the election that they would work for his victory at the poll, is still in the wool. This time, as you rightly suggested, it is the turn of his legal team to milk him by advising him to reject the outcome of the election and challenge the result in court. But he will fail if he does so.
•Onyejaka Alex Arinze, ariwaotiokpo1980@yahoo.com
- Also published in the Daily Sun of Monday, November 29, 2021
