While the final report of the Lagos State Judicial Panel of Enquiry and Restitution is expected, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has stated that the government will make the findings fully available to the public.
The State Government, according to Sanwo-Olu, would not try to hide the panel’s recommendations, whether they are favorable or not. The Governor stated that the panel report would aid in the strengthening of true reconciliation and the prevention of recurrence of violence in the state.
On Thursday, Sanwo-Olu spoke on the difficult process of rebuilding the state, one year after a wave of arsonist assaults erupted in response to EndSARS rallies in Lagos. Following the violence that erupted in the aftermath of the demonstration, arsonists set fire to public transportation infrastructure, court buildings, police stations, private properties, and iconic assets in Lagos on October 21, 2020.
“The panel concluded its sittings about three days ago and has asked for time to put the reports together behind closed doors. We do not know the content of the report, but we want to say publicly that, upon the handover of the report, we will be making it public. We will not cover up anything. This is not who we are and that is not what our Government stands for. We will make full disclosure of whatever recommendations that the panel will come up with. I assure citizens of Lagos that we will not leave anything to chance.” Governor Sanwo-Olu said.
The EndSARS panel, according to Gov. Sanwo-Olu, was established to investigate claims of police abuse of human rights and to determine the cause of coordinated attacks on Lagos, and that the panel’s final findings will be completely implemented.
The Governor also addressed the arrest of some young people who took part in a drive-through EndSARS memorial protest at the Lekki Tollgate on Wednesday, revealing that he had ordered their unconditional release, with the exception of one person who was captured with hazardous weapons at the site.
“Yesterday (Wednesday), we saw a protest in Lagos and everybody that was arrested in connection with the protest have all been released, except an individual that was caught with dangerous weapons and who confessed to the police that he joined the protest to cause mayhem,” the Governor said.
He praised the police for being aware of their obligation to identify and separate lawbreakers from law-abiding citizens who follow the rules.
Sanwo-Olu offered a hand of friendship to the youth, encouraging them to participate in the state’s development while underlining his commitment to reconciliation. He invited them to join the reconstruction effort in order to restore the operational capabilities of institutions that had been damaged by the conflict.
The Governor stated that the destruction had hampered the operational activities of the impacted public institutions, but that the State Government would not abdicate its responsibilities to reconstruct the buildings and restore their operational capabilities.
“It is exactly a year ago today when Lagos was hit by violence in the aftermath of the EndSARS protests. Lagos witnessed massive destruction of infrastructure, iconic buildings, transport infrastructure, police station and others.
Today being a year after the event, there is no better time to say how difficult it has been for us as a State and how committed it has been for us. As tough as it is, the Government will certainly not shy away from its responsibility. We see the incident as a challenge and we will fix it with everything that we have.” he said
The post “#EndSARS: Gov. Sanwo-Olu promises to make the report of the judicial panel public and orders the release of all those arrested and jailed at Wednesday’s mourning rally" first appeared on Lindaikejiblog.
