Nigeria’s Lagos state government has released a “white paper” on a report by a judicial panel set up to investigate police abuses and deadly violence at the Lekki toll gate last year.
The white paper is the official document of the government’s analysis and proposed response to the report.
The government has denied that nine persons were killed at the toll gate when soldiers stormed the protest ground to disperse the protesters. It described the finding that the nine were shot dead as “assumptions and speculations”.
The judicial panel of inquiry submitted its report to the state governor two weeks ago.
A leaked version of the report indicted the Nigerian army and the Lagos government in the killing of unarmed protesters and a cover-up of the 20 October 2020 incident.
It described the killings as a “massacre”.
Nigeria’s Information Minister Lai Mohammed last week denied there was a massacre and called the report “fake”.
The Lagos government on Tuesday said it accepted 11 out of 32 recommendations. It accepted six others with modifications and rejected one.
It’ said that 14 of the recommendations fell outside the powers of the state and would consequently be forwarded to the federal government for consideration.
Reacting to the report for the first time on Tuesday, Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said it reopened a deep wound.
He said he had initiated a peace walk in efforts to ensure harmony in the state.
Source: BBC
