Banky W, the Nigerian singer, has tackled the Lagos government over the proposed reopening of the Lekki tollgate.
The tollgate was shut down in October 2020 following the army crackdown on unarmed EndSARS protesters.
A panel set up to probe the cases of police brutality had listed 48 casualties of the #EndSARS protest.
It established, contrary to the federal government’s denial, that nine citizens died and four others went missing.
The panel said the killing of unarmed protesters at the toll gate could be described in the context of a “massacre”.
But the Lagos government argued that the testimony of John Obafunwa, a pathologist who appeared before the judicial panel on police brutality, showed that there was no massacre at the Lekki tollgate on October 20, 2020.
On Monday, the Lekki Concession Company (LCC) announced that tolling activities will resume at the gate by April.
Reacting to the announcement, Banky W accused the state government of showing a “lack of empathy” towards the pains Nigerians went through at the toll gate.
In a series of tweets on Thursday, the singer insisted Lagos disregarded the pains of the young Nigerians that were hurt.
“The intended resumption of collections at the Lekki toll gate is yet another example of a serious lack of empathy by the Lagos state govt,” he wrote.
Lagos State is exhibiting a blatant disregard – not just for the pain felt by all the young people who were hurt by the events of #EndSARS, but also the pain and difficulty being experienced by the majority of Lagosians just trying to survive in these difficult times.
Advertisement— Banky Wellington (@BankyW) March 17, 2022
“All things being considered, the timing of this decision is just unfair.
“Lagos state is exhibiting a blatant disregard- not just for the pain felt by all the young people who were hurt by the events of the #EndSARS.
“But also the pain and difficulty being experienced by the majority of Lagosians just trying to survive in these different times.”
Earlier, Debo Adedayo, a comedian, had said anything aside from justice for the victims would not be accepted.
Speaking shortly after Lagos released a white paper on the recommendations of the judicial panel, Adedayo had argued: “Recommendations were made by the panel. I expect that these recommendations are accepted.
“I expect that the events of police brutality up until October 20, 2020, are formally acknowledged.
“The recommendations, going from justice for victims; a public apology from the government; police reform and all of that, should be put in place. Anything contrary to what the panel has recommended will not cut it.
“It would simply mean that the government is not willing and ready t accept the reality of things.”
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