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EndSARS JUDICIAL PANEL: Lagos releases White Paper, says panel report unreliable

Published

5 years ago

December 1, 2021

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The Lagos State government has said the findings of the Judicial Panel of Inquiry that nine persons were killed at the Lekki tollgate on October 20, last year, is incorrect.

According to a white paper released Tuesday, the state government said the “finding of nine deaths at LTG on 20th October 2020 is even more baffling because apart from listing out their names in tabular form at pages 297-298, the JPI offered no explanation regarding the circumstances of their death.”

The government made this claim while reacting to the 24th recommendation of the panel that “a monument memorializing the lives lost and those injured at the Lekki Toll Gate with the names inscribed on the Monument,” be created.

In the white paper, the Lagos State government said the recommendation “is not acceptable.”

This, it stated, is due to the testimony of John Obafunwa, the chief pathologist at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), that “only three of the bodies that they conducted post-mortem examination on were from Lekki and only one had gunshot injury and this was not debunked.”

Aside from dismissing the findings that nine persons were killed, the government said it disagreed with the findings that hospitals treated victims of gunshot wounds from Lekki tollgate on the night of the shooting.

This is despite the numerous medical reports tendered to the judicial panel by hospitals who treated victims of gunshot injuries from the Lekki tollgate.

Several petitioners also narrated how they were shot at the tollgate, and showed wounds of gunshot injuries sustained to the panel, backed up by the medical reports tendered by the hospitals that treated them.

Hospitals such as Reddington Hospital, Vedic Life Healthcare, and Grandville Trauma Centre, confirmed that some patients were referred for amputation due to the severity of the gunshot injuries sustained.

Reacting to the number of deaths recorded at the Lekki tollgate, the state government said there was no evidence.

“The names simply sprang up at pages 297-298 of the report without any justification. It is quite astonishing that in the list of 11 deaths set out at pages 297-298, two of the names appeared twice (Kolade Salami and Folorunsho Olabisi as Nos. 37 and 38),” the government said.

It also said that Nathaniel Solomon, who was listed as the 46th victim of the Lekki incident, testified as a witness and petitioned the panel in respect of his brother whom he alleged died at Lekki tollgate, but the petitioner himself was listed as having died at the tollgate on October 20, last year.

“The JPI’s finding of nine deaths is therefore irreconcilable with the evidence of Prof. Obafunwa that only one person died of ganshot wounds at 7:43pm at LTG on 21st October 2020.

“Having held that there was no evidence before it to the contrary of what Prof Obafunwa said. The question is where did the JPI then get its finding of nine deaths?

“The only victim of gunshot injury from LTG was picked up at 7:43pm on 21st October 2020 after the curfew commenced (see page 99). Furthermore, there was no sired of evidence regarding who shot him,” the government said.

The Lagos State government further pointed out that “another substantial inconsistency in the JPI Report was the award of compensation to the one out of the alleged nine, listed as ‘deceased’ which showed that the JPI itself had doubts as to the death of eight other allegedly deceased persons on its list.”

The government added that the panel “surprisingly” awarded the sum of N10 million to one Serah Ibrahim, who was neither a petitioner nor complainant before the panel.

“Serah Ibrahim testified on oath that she did not have any petition before the Panel; neither did she have any claims for compensation. This award to Serah Ibrahim is also contrary to the provisions of section 13 Tribunal of Inquiry Law 2015 (Cap. T6 Laws of Lagos State) which prescribes that only witnesses requested or summoned by a Tribunal of Inquiry are entitled to witness fees subject to consent of the Attorney General. Serah Ibrahim did not testify at the request or summons of the Tribunal.

“On the basis of the above fundamental inconsistencies in the findings of the JPI regarding the nine deaths at LTG and particularly because the findings are clearly and manifestly not supported by evidence.

“It also follows that the irresistible conclusion to be drawn from the JPI’s acceptance of Prof Obafunwa’s testimony that only one person died of gunshot wounds at LTG on 21 October 2020, is that there was no massacre at LTG, contextual or otherwise.

“The findings of the JPI that nine people died at the Lekki tollgate on 20th October 2020, from gunshots fired by the Military are based on assumptions and….”

The state added that the inconsistencies and contradictions in the panel’s report concerning deaths at Lekki Tollgate rendered the panel’s findings and conclusions “totally unreliable and therefore unacceptable.”

Related Topics:EndSARS White Paper Lagos

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EFCC says it froze Osun account over ‘fraudulent handling’ of N11bn ecological, intervention funds

Published

4 hours ago

August 5, 2026

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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has explained that it froze the bank account of the Osun state government over alleged fraudulent handling of N11 billion ecological and intervention funds.

The anti-graft agency, in a statement on Wednesday, said it has been investigating the Osun state government since March regarding the alleged mishandling of the funds.

According to the agency, some officials of the state government, including the accountant-general of the state, had been interviewed by EFCC investigators.

The agency said amid the probe, it observed that huge transfers of funds were being made from the account into different corporate entities since August 2.

“These ongoing investigations of the state government would not have warranted any placement of Post No Debit order on its account but for the precipitate and unwarranted movement of funds from the accounts to different suspicious accounts since August 2, 2026,” the statement reads.

“The Commission noticed huge transfers of funds into different corporate entities and had to swiftly halt the trend by freezing the accounts from which such heavy funds are being moved.

“The EFCC’s preventive mandate is a public-inclined framework of safeguarding public funds, assets and resources.

“The Commission cannot watch idly while a state government’s account is being pillaged.”

The anti-graft agency said it is aware of the forthcoming Osun governorship election, adding that it is “uncharitable” to overlook the huge transfers of funds over the “excuse of an upcoming election”.

“The Osun State government account was frozen to save public funds from being looted,” the agency said.

In a letter dated August 5, 2026, and signed by Adenike Babalola, assistant commander of the EFCC on behalf of the director of investigation, the anti-graft agency directed First Bank not to allow withdrawals from the Osun state government’s statutory allocation account as part of an ongoing investigation.

The agency instructed the bank to place a post-no-debit restriction on the account pending the conclusion of the probe.

Reacting to the development, Ademola Adeleke, Osun governor, said the state government will not accept a situation in which federal government agencies trample upon the rights of subnational governments.

Adeleke said the Osun government has been witnessing numerous sponsored attacks, including the harassment of Accord party members and the move to stall the operations of LGAs in the state.

Adeleke said he has directed the attorney-general of the state to challenge the “illegality”.

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Osun threatens lawsuit as EFCC freezes govt account 10 days to election

Published

10 hours ago

August 5, 2026

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Less than 24 hours after Governor Ademola Adeleke alleged that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was planning to freeze the state government account domiciled with First Bank, the anti-graft agency has reportedly freezed the account, according to Vanguard.

The account, reportedly used for the payment of workers’ salaries, was placed on “Post No Debit” status by the anti-graft agency.

The development came hours after Governor Ademola Adeleke raised the alarm that the EFCC was planning to freeze the state government’s accounts and those of top government officials ahead of the August 15 governorship election.

In a statement issued earlier on Wednesday by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, Adeleke described the alleged move as an attempt to cripple government activities before the poll.

The governor had insisted that there was no legal basis for freezing the accounts of a state government, arguing that the EFCC lacked the statutory powers to take such action.

However, a source reportedly told Vanguard that the account had already been restricted.

“I can confirm that the state government account has been frozen by the EFCC. It is no longer an allegation. The governor will address the press shortly to update the public on the situation,” the source reportedly told Vanguard.

The reason for the restriction was not immediately known as of the time of filing this report.

The EFCC had yet to issue an official statement on the development.

The development comes as Osun prepares for its August 15 governorship election, with the account restriction expected to generate political reactions ahead of the poll.

Meanwhile, the state’s Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Oluwole Jimi-Bada, had said he has the mandate of the governor to sue the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for freezing the government accounts.

Jimi-Bada said a ‘Post no debit’ letter from the EFCC was forwarded to the management of the First Bank where Osun government accounts were domiciled on Wednesday.

The commissioner, who expressed readiness to proceed to court, said the move by the anti-graft agency may hamper government’s business, noted that Governor Ademola Adeleke was not using state funds to run its campaign for reelection.

“I have the mandate of the governor to proceed to the Federal High Court to challenge this move. EFCC can investigate the accounts but it can’t freeze the accounts without order of court.

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WAEC releases 2026 WASSCE results, withholds 167,486 candidate’s results over malpractice

Published

13 hours ago

August 5, 2026

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The West African Examinations Council says it is withholding the results of 167,486 candidates, representing 8.59 per cent of those who sat the 2026 Computer-Based West African Senior School Certificate Examination for School candidates, over alleged examination malpractice.

This was disclosed by the Head of WAEC Nigeria National Office, Dr Amos Dangut, who announced the release of the results in Lagos on Wednesday.

The number of withheld reults, however, represents a decline from the 9.7 per cent recorded in 2025.

Dangut said the council withheld the affected results due to various infractions, including the increasing use of mobile phones in examination halls despite the existing ban and organised cheating in some schools.

“The increasing use of cell phones in the examination hall, in spite of the existing ban, and organised cheating in some schools, are other nagging issues,” Dangut said.

He added that some supervisors and invigilators found assisting candidates in malpractice had been arrested and would face disciplinary action through the relevant state ministries of education.

A total of 1,959,668 candidates from 24,207 schools registered for the examination across Nigeria, Benin Republic, Côte d’Ivoire and Equatorial Guinea, while 1,950,726 candidates eventually sat for the examination.

1,200,514 candidates (61.54 per cent) obtained credits and above in at least five subjects, including English Language and Mathematics.

1,687,378 candidates (86.50 per cent) secured credits and above in a minimum of five subjects, with or without English Language and Mathematics.

The number of candidates who obtained credits in five subjects including English and Mathematics dropped by 1.42 percentage points compared with the 2025 examination.

Of the 1.2 million candidates who achieved credits in English and Mathematics:

558,883 (28.65 per cent) were male.

641,631 (32.89 per cent) were female.

Overall, 997,267 females (51.12 per cent) and 953,459 males (48.88 per cent) participated in the examination.

WAEC said 1,834,695 candidates, representing 94.05 per cent, had their results fully processed and released, while the results of 116,031 candidates (5.95 per cent) were still being processed.

The council also disclosed that 1,213 candidates with special needs participated in the examination. They included:

137 visually impaired candidates;

491 candidates with hearing impairment;

55 spastic and mentally challenged candidates; and

41 physically challenged candidates.

The 2026 examination marked the second edition of the Computer-Based WASSCE for School Candidates, following the introduction of the format by WAEC.

Dangut said the council introduced several innovations, including the Digital Examiner Mark System to improve the speed of processing results, serialisation of question papers to curb malpractice, and a new portal that allows candidates to generate e-PINs directly for checking their results.

The examination was conducted between April 24 and June 19, 2026, with 102,708 examiners involved in marking across 88 marking venues.

Dangut, who described the briefing as his third and final engagement as WAEC Nigeria National Office head, said candidates sponsored by states indebted to the council would not have their results released until the outstanding payments were cleared.