Olayomi Koiki
Lagos – Nigeria’s Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has suspended his media aide, Wale Ajetunmobi, over comments he made on social media admitting the execution of #EndSARS protesters in October 2020.
The governor’s spokesman, Gboyega Akosile, said in a Tuesday statement that Ajetunmobi’s suspension followed his “misrepresentation of facts on his personal X account on a past incident.”
“The governor wishes to state categorically that his administration frowns at any form of extrajudicial punishment and will not be a part of any such action. That is not who we are. That is not our way,” Akosile said.
Ajetunmobi had, in a now-deleted post on Sunday, disclosed that some of the arsonists who set ablaze Television Continental (TVC) during the nationwide protest against police brutality were executed.
He wrote on social media platform X: “The full story of people who burnt down TVC in 2020 will be told one day, with gory clips and images. One thing to note: majority of them have been hunted down and executed.
“One of them, a young boy trading in cooking gas around Ketu, was found with AK-47 at the site. Even his neighbours were shocked. But the full gist is better saved for later.”
A commentator with the username @hamoye4real – asked Ajetunmobi: “What do you mean by ‘hunted down and executed’? Are you in the know of extra-judicial killings?”
The suspended governor’s aide replied, “Lol… you want to create a narrative in your head. What is extrajudicial killing here? Some of the people were chased by soldiers and exchange of fire occurred. Then arsonists were overpowered and killed in the process. Others ran away. Is that an extra-judicial killing to you?”
Several unarmed young protesters were shot dead by police and military operatives at the Lekki Toll Gate and other areas in Lagos in the heat of the #EndSARS protests.
The violence escalated after the killings, with both government and private property across Lagos set alight, one of which was the TVC, a broadcast station owned by President Bola Tinubu.
A letter in August 2023, revealed that the governor approved over ₦61 million for a mass burial of 103 people said to have been killed during the deadly violence.