BEVERLY HILLS, November 14, (THEWILL) – The Commander of 81 Military Intelligence Brigade, Victoria Island, Lagos, Brig. Gen. Ahmed Taiwo on Saturday, said the #EndSARS protest plunged Lagos State into anarchy.
Taiwo made this known on Saturday during his testimony before the Lagos state Judicial Panal of Inquiry and Restitution, on the alleged shooting of #EndSARS protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate on October 20.
Taiwo said against the background of burning of police stations and looting of arms and ammunition; the killing of policemen, blockage of roads and extortion of money from innocent citizens by hoodlums, inviting the military was the best decision the Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, could have taken.
Taiwo said this on Saturday in his testimony before the Lagos State Judicial Panel of Inquiry probing the alleged shooting of #EndSARS protesters by soldiers at the Lekki Toll Gate on the night of October 20, 2020.
Taiwo, while showing the panel the footage of a scene where a mob killed someone, set the body ablaze and hoodlums were talking about sharing body parts, said the anarchy was reminiscent of the Liberian war.
He said, “these scenes are reminiscent of the Liberian Civil War when the fighters believed that once they consume human body parts, they would be fortified, they would be strong.
“It was these incidents that made the Governor of Lagos State ask for military intervention and in my opinion, that was the correct thing to do since the police had been overrun and policemen were fighting for their dear lives.”
Taiwo said the urgency of the situation made the governor to imposed a 24-hour curfew which was to commence at 4:00 pm on October 20 but was later shifted to 9:00 pm.
According to him, the time was not communicated to the Nigerian Army, and troops were deployed immediately upon receipt of the signal to activate phase 4, meaning immediate deployment of soldiers outside the barrack to help control the crisis of internal security.
He said the troops were not only deployed to the Lekki Toll Gate, but to other areas like Badagry, Ikorodu, Apapa, Alimosho, Epe, Lagos Island and the entire state to restore normalcy.
Brigadier Taiwo added that the army were shooting into the air at the Lekki Toll Gate and not at the protesters, backing his statement up with several video clips of what he says transpired that night.
He further claimed that after the soldiers left the area, hoodlums went on to destroy the Toll Gate plaza.
He also insisted that the troops used “blank bullets that contain gun powder, and cannot cause any damage to the flesh, and if real bullets were used, one bullet would have killed three persons per shot.”
