A member of the Judicial Panel of Inquiry for Restitution for Victims of SARS-related abuses and the Lekki Tollgate killings in Lagos State, Mr. Ebun Adegboruwa SAN has said the Lagos Panel has not made any finding on the Lekki Toll Gate Incidence.
Adegboruwa SAN said this while debunking a statement attributed to the Panel posted on facebook by Mr Joe Igbokwe, a member of the Lagos State Executive Council as Special Adviser to the Governor.
The post which has now been deleted from Mr. Igbokwe’s facebook quoted the Lagos Judicial Panel to have said that the allegation that people died at the Lekki Toll Gate were mere speculations. It read:
“We concluded that the allegations that people died at the Lekki Tollgate are mere speculations without proof” – Lagos Judicial Panel
In a swift reaction, Mr. Adegboruwa SAN appealed to Nigerians to disregard the statement from Mr. Igbokwe as same had “no verifiable source”
“I have just come across the Facebook post of Mr Joe Igbokwe, a member of the Lagos State Executive Council as Special Adviser to the Governor, to the extent that the Lagos Judicial Panel made a finding that nobody died from the Lekki Toll Gate Incidence of October 20, 2020. I was thoroughly embarrassed as I was diminished, by the said post, coming as it were, from someone who should know better.
I’m a member of the Lagos Judicial Panel. The Panel NEVER EVER said this. No such finding came from the Panel at all. As a matter of fact, the Panel has just opened the cases of EndSARS protesters, who have video evidence with which they hope to disprove the claims of the Nigerian Army that nobody was shot.
So, I truly don’t know where Mr Joe Igbokwe got his story from, but it’s certainly not from the Panel of which I am a member.
We are even yet to take evidence from the Lagos State Government, from the Chief Pathologist, we are yet to conclude the testimonies of the hospitals where it was alleged that people with gun shot wounds were treated.
So, how on earth can we conclude as a Panel that people died or people did not die when we are yet to hear the whole testimonies of those involved?
I do humbly appeal to all Nigerians to disregard the statement from Mr Joe Igbokwe which had no verifiable source. Members of the Panel are people with proven integrity and I can assure all Nigerians and indeed the entire world, that our findings will be based on truth; if people were killed at Lekki Toll Gate on October 20, 2020, we will say so loud and clear and heavens will not fall, but if otherwise, we will also says so, clearly.” Ebun wrote.