The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has made a call to Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari to sack the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.
This call followed the report of the Panel of Investigation established by the Lagos State Government to reveal the true incidents of October 20, 2020 at the Lekki Toll Gate. The report charged the police and soldiers in the Nigerian Army with killing and maiming harmless Nigerian youths who were protesting police brutality and poor governance in the country.
However, Mohammed denied that anyone was killed at the scene of the protest in a series of press conferences. Despite the stance held by the Federal Government, the report provides clear evidence that there was truly a massacre at the Lekki toll gate.
In a media statement that came after the conclusive report and verdict of the Judicial Panel, the HURIWA called for the dismissal, arrest and trial for his shocking lies which have now been contradicted by the findings of the Lagos Judicial Panel of Investigation. The Association also recalled the claim made by Amnesty International that at least 12 protesters were killed in Lagos State by security operatives was challenged by the Minister of Information.
HURIWA likened the denial of the killing at the Lekki toll gate by Lai Mohammed to the denial of the Holocaust by Adolf Hitler, stating that the offence is punishable by nearly “half a century of incarceration.” The Association also commended the members and Chairperson of the Panel of Inquiry for their hard work in bringing the truth to light.
The group also asked the President not to treat the lawlessness of the security agencies like water over rock, just as it mentioned that if the President allows his Minister of Information to get away with denying the massacre, the President will be remembered as a dictator who oversaw the genocide of young protesters.
