BEVERLY HILLS, October 27, (THEWILL) – The Lagos-based 81 Division of the Nigerian Army, Tuesday said it intervened in the anarchy that followed the #EndSARS protest at the invitation of the Lagos State Government.
The Army said its soldiers did not shoot directly at any civilian and disassociated its personnel from “A viral video on social media in which it was alleged that civilian protesters were massacred by soldiers at Lekki Toll Plaza”.
The Acting Deputy Director Public Relations of 81 Division, Major Osona Olaniyi, in a statement said: “This allegation is untrue, unfounded and aimed at causing anarchy in the country.
“At no time did soldiers of the Nigerian Army open fire on any civilian.
“From the onset of the ENDSARS protest, there was no time personnel of 81 Division Nigerian Army Lagos were involved,”‘ he said.
He said the decision to call in the military was taken by the Lagos State Government (LASG) after a 24 hours curfew was imposed.
“This was as a result of the violence which led to several police stations being burnt, policemen killed, suspects in police custody released and weapons carted away.
“The situation was fast degenerating into anarchy. It was at this point that LASG requested for the military to intervene in order to restore normalcy.”
“The intervention of the military followed all laid down procedures, the statement added.
“All the soldiers involved acted within the confines of the Rules of Engagement (ROE) for internal security operations.
The Army’s 81 Division reiterated that it did not shoot at any civilian.
“There are glaring and convincing evidence to attest to this fact.
“This allegation is the handwork of mischief makers who will stop at nothing to tarnish the image of the Nigerian Army. The general public is hereby enjoined to discountenance this allegation as there is no iota of truth therein.”
More than 50 persons from THEWILL’s count were injured at the Lagos Toll Gate Plaza shooting, where peaceful protesters had camped for about 10 days seeking an end to police brutality and the disbandment of SARS, a notorious police tactical unit.
Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu said two persons died from the toll gate incident. He said died from trauma to the head.
Sanwo-Olu said the two other bodies found on the roads on Admiralty Road and Victoria Island had no link with Lekki toll gate shooting.
One eyewitness, DJ Switch, a singer and DJ, who streamed the incident on Tuesday night, said she counted at least 15 dead bodies, which she claimed were taken away by soldiers.
So far, almost everyone initially listed as dead from the tollgate incident on social media have come out to say they are alive.
THEWILL and its affiliates who are following leads on the Lekki tollgate shooting incident have placed both the police and soldiers as shooters at the toll gate vicinity but have met a dead end in our bids to establish multiple dead or a massacre as being alleged.
In the course of our inquiry, we also discovered that there was a cult war in the Ajah axis of the Lekki expressway that Tuesday night that left many feared dead and wounded from both gunshots and machete cuts.
Eyewitnesses who live in the area told THEWILL and our affiliates that the cult war has remained an ongoing issue in the area.
About the Author
