There have been reactions to the recent statement of the Nigerian Army that claimed that its men were invited by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to disperse #ENDSARS protesters at Lekki toll gate last week.
The Lekki incident has generated wild reactions as soldiers were said to have “opened fire on the protesters, killing and injuring many of them.”
Governor Sanwo-Olu had denied having a hand in the deployment of soldiers saying he had no such power.
The military, through its spokesperson, Major-General John Enenche had also denied the presence of soldiers at the scene saying some of the videos being shared were ‘photoshopped’.
However, the Army, through its Acting Director, Public Relations, 81 Division, Major Osoba Olaniyi in a statement confirmed that the soldiers were drafted to the venue of the protest on the request of the Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
He said, “The decision to call in the military was taken by the Lagos State Government after a 24- hour curfew was imposed.
“This was as a result of the violence which led to several police stations being burnt, policemen killed, suspects in police custody released and weapons carted away.
“The situation was fast degenerating into anarchy. It was at this point that LASG requested for the military to intervene in order to restore normalcy.” he said.
The statement by the Army has however got many Nigerians asking who was saying the truth between the Governor and the military.
See some reactions below:
Everyone do me a favour:
Go to the social media pages of @Mbuhari @jidesanwoolu and @HQNigerianArmyGo to the last tweets and posts,
simply reply it with this question: “WHO ORDERED THE LEKKI KILLINGS?”IG. Twitter. Facebook.
Give them no breathing space.Go now. Thanks 🙏🏿.
— #OurFavOnlineDoc 🩺 🇬🇧 (@DrOlufunmilayo) October 28, 2020
https://twitter.com/BBNaijaAnalyst/status/1321365306049220608
https://twitter.com/MrOnos147/status/1321370164617793536
Nigerian Army says it sent soldiers to #EndSARS Lekki Protest, upon invite by the Lagos State Government
I knew Becky Anderson interview, rattled Abuja. Now they’ve thrown Sanwo-Olu under the bus
Like Pontus Pilate, Buhari washed off his hands, Sanwo-Olu about to face The Hague
— NEFERTITI (@firstladyship) October 27, 2020
Anytime you remember #LekkiMassacre just know in your mind that Jide Sanwo-Olu INVITED the Soldiers to come waste the lives of our fellow Brothers and Sisters who were peaceful with their protests!#EndSARS
— Adewale Onagbesan #GoodGovernance (@AristokratLagos) October 27, 2020
Nobody should believe @HQNigerianArmy’s claim that it was @jidesanwoolu that ordered for soldiers to be brought to #Lekki. It’s a brazen LIE. Since when did Governors become Army Commanders. #LekkiMassacre was ordered by the Fulanized @NGRPresident & executed by a Fulanized Army.
— Mazi Nnamdi Kanu (@MaziNnamdiKanu) October 28, 2020
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