Nigeria’s minister for information, culture and tourism, Lai Mohammed, has finally reacted to the recently submitted report by the Lagos state judicial panel of inquiry and restitution to investigate cases of police brutality.
The minister reacted to the report of the Lagos panel during a press conference in Abuja on Tuesday, November 23.
Mohammed while speaking said there is totally nothing in the report that is circulating to make the Nigerian government change its stand on the incident that was said to have occurred at the Lekki Toll Gate on October 20, 2020.
The minister also said that for the Nigerian government to change its stance on the issue, there has to be a thorough investigation of the incident.
He said such investigation and its report is expected to meet all standards. Mohammed added that the federal government rejects the report that soldiers and police officers killed innocent Nigerians at the Lekki Toll Gate on October 20, 2020, as the conclusion by the panel is not supported by the weight of available evidence.
He warned that murder indictment is such a serious one and can not be done on the basis of ordinary allegations like the panel did. Noting that such allegation must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt, Mohammed said the report in circulation is being circulated with the aim to embarrass the Federal Government and its agencies without substantial proof.
Continuing he noted that the Nigerian government has never condoned the abuse of the rights of Nigerians by security agencies under any guise and it was for this reason that the SARS unit of the police was disbanded.
