A PROFESSOR of economics Pat Utomi has described the shooting of protesters at Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos during the #EndSARS protest as premeditated mass murder.
Utomi spoke on Arise Television on Tuesday.
He was reacting to the report submitted by the Lagos State Judicial Panel on Restitution for Victims of Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) Related Abuses and other matters and the October 20, 2020 Lekki Toll Gate.
Utomi said he witnessed the incident from his residence.
“I feel a particular way about this thing because I watched it happen literarily,” he said, noting that there was no prior warning to the youths.
“There wasn’t any warning like get out of there, you kids. No tear gas, no water cannons. I just heard gunfire. I thought they wanted to intimidate those kids. It was a premeditated mass murder of young Nigerians.
“It was a tragedy that people had the conscience to deny that this happened publicly. If we don’t get to the heart of this, our country will suffer,” he said.
He challenged the youths to change the country in 2023.
“If the youths should take momentum of this, then they can change things.”
Also speaking on the programme an activist Deji Adeyanju blamed President Muhammadu Buhari and the former Chief Of Army Staff Tukur Burutai for the incident.
“We must not let this slide because this is a democracy. If we allow this to go other people will do worse,” he said.
Adeyanju said his group has sent a petition to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to prosecute those involved.
“The victims of these crimes have gone to the panel. Hospitals have gone to the panel so there is evidence.”
He commended the Lagos State government for not interfering with the panel.
A reporter with the ICIR
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