Social media customers, on Tuesday, commemorated the sixth anniversary of the #EndSARS protests, demanding justice for victims of the October 20, 2020, shootings on the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos and accountability for these accountable for the incident.
The customers, who shared tributes and private experiences on their social media accounts, referred to as for an finish to police brutality, respect for human rights and complete police reforms.
Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) Presidential Candidate, Peter Obi, additionally joined the commemoration, describing the anniversary as a reminder of the sacrifices Nigerian youths made of their demand for a greater nation.
In a message on his Facebook web page titled, “EndSARS Lekki Toll Gate: Never Forget October 20, 2020”, Obi mentioned the incident remained a painful reminder of the worth younger Nigerians paid of their wrestle for a greater nation.
“On that fateful night, peaceful #EndSARS protesters were met with gunfire. Lives were lost, many were injured, and the nation was left with questions about justice, accountability, and the sanctity of human life. We must never forget. We must never normalise injustice.”
He mentioned Nigeria wanted to develop into a rustic the place residents have been protected quite than brutalised and younger folks have been heard quite than silenced.
“Nigeria must become a nation where no citizen is punished for demanding good governance and a better future,” he mentioned.
On his half, Atiku accused the APC authorities of failing to offer solutions to Nigerians over the October 2020 Lekki capturing, saying six years after the incident, the nation continues to be ready to know who ordered the capturing.
Atiku, in an announcement marking the sixth anniversary of the EndSARS protests, mentioned the APC-led authorities owed Nigerians, significantly younger folks, accountability for the incident and a greater future amid worsening financial hardship.
“Six years after the Lekki shooting, Nigeria is still waiting for a clear answer to one devastating question: Who gave the order?” he mentioned.
He additionally recalled the response of President Bola Tinubu, who, in October 2020, questioned the circumstances surrounding the presence of protesters on the Lekki Toll Gate and the casualties recorded through the incident.
Atiku mentioned Tinubu, quite than demonstrating the empathy and compassion the tragedy demanded, had requested: “How were they there? How long were they there? What kind of characters are they?”
According to him, the response appeared extra involved with questioning the victims than demanding accountability from these accountable for the violence in opposition to peaceable protesters.
A social media consumer, Henry Asama, mentioned the anniversary introduced again reminiscences of the capturing of protesters on the Lekki Toll Gate.
In his submit, Asama wrote, “End SARS protest, we’ll never forget how the Nigerian army opened fire on harmless and armless Nigerian YOUTHS 20-10-2020.”
Similarly, Gbadamosi Olamide Michael recalled how the protests disrupted motion in Ibadan, Oyo State, saying he needed to stroll for hours from his faculty to get dwelling as a result of roads have been blocked by demonstrators.
Michael mentioned the expertise remained memorable six years later due to the ache, unanswered questions and grief that adopted the protests.
He mentioned the demonstrations have been pushed by calls for for the abolition of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), an finish to police abuses and complete police reforms.
“They didn’t ask too much, ‘REFORM THE POLICE FOR A BETTER NIGERIA!’” he wrote.
For Nwibo Friday, the anniversary was a reminder of what he described as a defining second in Nigeria’s historical past.
In a submit titled “Not Forgotten So Soon,” Friday mentioned October 20, 2020, would stay within the reminiscences of Nigerians due to the occasions on the Lekki Toll Gate.
He recalled that the protests started as a marketing campaign in opposition to police brutality and for reforms to SARS however have been adopted by shootings that left Nigerians mourning.
“We will never forget how many NIGERIANS are mascred during the endsars protest,” he wrote.
Kennedy Ton additionally used the anniversary to recollect those that misplaced their lives through the protests, questioning why the identities of those that authorised the operation had not been established publicly to his satisfaction.
“Today we remember those who lost their lives at the Lekki Toll Gate End SARS massacre,” Ton wrote.
“Six years after, yet we keep asking the question who gave the order of the massacre….. a nation of unaccountability, brutality, and negligence,” he added.
Another consumer, Adeleye Ayomide, recalled that protesters had gathered on the Lekki Toll Gate and Alausa in Lagos through the demonstrations, with some waving Nigerian flags and singing the nationwide anthem.
Ayomide mentioned the protests had attracted younger Nigerians throughout the nation who demanded an finish to police brutality, corruption and the disbandment of SARS.
He additionally referred to as for the victims to be remembered and for justice to be pursued.
The #EndSARS protests started in October 2020 following years of complaints about alleged abuses by SARS, a unit of the Nigeria Police Force established to deal with armed theft and different violent crimes.
The unit confronted persistent allegations of illegal arrests, extortion, torture, harassment and extrajudicial killings. Previous authorities guarantees to reform or disband the unit had did not resolve public considerations.
The demonstrations gained momentum after a video circulated extensively on social media in early October 2020, exhibiting SARS officers allegedly dragging two males from a resort and capturing one in every of them. Protests subsequently unfold throughout a number of Nigerian cities, together with Lagos, Abuja, Ibadan, Port Harcourt and Benin City.
On October 11, 2020, the police introduced the dissolution of SARS. However, protesters continued their demonstrations, insisting that the federal government implement broader police reforms, examine alleged abuses and maintain offending officers accountable.
The Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos grew to become one of many motion’s most outstanding protest websites, with demonstrators sustaining a presence there for days.
On October 20, 2020, after Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu introduced a 24-hour curfew amid escalating tensions and violence in elements of the state, troopers arrived on the Lekki Toll Gate, the place protesters had gathered.
Amnesty International, which investigated the incident utilizing eyewitness accounts, video footage and hospital reviews, mentioned a minimum of 12 folks have been killed on the Lekki Toll Gate and Alausa protest grounds when safety forces opened fireplace on demonstrators.
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