KEY POINTS
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Police fired teargas to disperse the Lekki memorial.
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Political figures and journalists were among those affected.
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The event honoured victims of the 2020 #EndSARS protests.
Police officers fired teargas on Tuesday morning to disperse residents, journalists and political figures gathered at the Lekki tollgate in Lagos to remember victims of the October 2020 #EndSARS protests.
The memorial, organised by the Enough is Enough movement, was intended to honour those who died during the protests and mark six years since the incident. However, police action disrupted the gathering before participants could lay wreaths at the tollgate.
Among those caught up in the teargas were Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, the African Democratic Congress governorship candidate in Lagos State, and Funso Doherty, the Nigeria Democratic Congress governorship candidate.
A video shared by TheCable showed participants scrambling to escape as teargas spread across the area. The disruption prevented the planned wreath-laying ceremony from proceeding.
Memorial Disrupted as Questions Over 2020 Shooting Remain
The Lekki tollgate shooting occurred during the nationwide #EndSARS protests against alleged police brutality and misconduct. The incident attracted international attention and intensified calls for accountability and reforms to Nigeria’s policing system.
According to the Lagos State Judicial Panel of Inquiry report on the October 20, 2020, incident, nine people were confirmed dead, while four others were listed as missing and presumed dead.
Those identified as dead were Victor Sunday Ibanga, Abuta Solomon, Jide, Olalekan Abideen Ashafa, Olamilekan Ajasa, Kolade Salami, Folorunsho Olabisi, Kenechukwu Ugoh and Nathaniel Solomon.
The four people listed as missing and presumed dead were Abiodun Adesanya, Ifeanyi Nicholas Eji, Tola and Wisdom.
The #EndSARS movement began as a protest against the alleged abuses committed by the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), a police unit widely criticised over human rights violations. The protests eventually led the Federal Government to disband the unit.
The annual memorials have continued to draw attention to demands for justice, accountability and police reform. Tuesday’s disruption once again placed the Lekki tollgate at the centre of public debate over the handling of commemorations linked to the 2020 protests.
