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Lekki Massacre: Lawyer Faults Panel For Making Findings Public

Published

4 years ago

November 19, 2021

The Lagos State Government’s lawyer, Abiodun Owonikoko, SAN, has blamed the panel for making its findings, recommendations and conclusions public.

While claiming that there are at least 40 discrepancies in the report, Owonikoko also said that the content of the report is not completely accurate

The Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Owonikoko, who represented the state during the year-long sitting of the investigative EndSARS judicial panel, said this when he appeared on Arise TV on Thursday.

The Justice Doris Okuwobi-led panel had on Monday, November 15 submitted its report to the Lagos State Government.

Recall that the panel had in its findings revealed that police and soldiers of the Nigerian Army intentionally killed and maimed or assaulted at least 48 protesting unarmed youths at the scene.

Also, the 309-page report titled, ‘Report of Lekki Incident Investigation Of 20th October 2020, indicated that there was a “massacre in context” at the Lekki tollgate on October 20, 2020.

Also indicted in the report are Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Lekki Concession Company.

“By law, the findings, conclusions, and recommendations of the panel were not supposed to be made public. The report making rounds on social media is a draft of a minority opinion because I was there all through the proceedings,” he said.

“I am particularly shocked to read what is contained in the report because it is not completely accurate. I sighted over 40 discrepancies in this report, including awarding N15 million to someone who was a witness to a police brutality incident that had nothing to do with the Lekki incident. What kind of report is that?

“All the evidence we were able to gather during the proceedings, none of them could be fully established.

“The mistake made by the government was not setting up an entirely different panel to look into the Lekki incident because there are some members of the panel that are protagonists in the case against the Police. They were not supposed to be a part of it.”

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Putin Says Will Speak With Trump On Phone Today

Published

3 hours ago

July 3, 2025

Editor

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that he would speak with US counterpart Donald Trump on the phone Thursday, their first publicly announced call in over two weeks.

The two have been in regular contact since Trump took office in January and have discussed issues like the Ukraine conflict and economic cooperation.

Putin did not say what the two would discuss in Thursday’s call.

“I will talk to the US president today,” the Russian leader told the media during a visit to an exhibition centre in Moscow.

Trump confirmed the call on Truth Social, saying it would start at 10.00am (1400 GMT).

The two leaders have praised each other in recent weeks, despite Moscow’s ongoing assault on Ukraine.

Putin said last week that he had “great respect” for Trump and that US ties were improving. Trump said Putin’s statements were “very nice”.

AFP

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NAFDAC Warns Against Use Of Excess Hydroquinone In Cosmetics

Published

1 day ago

July 2, 2025

Editor

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has warned users of bleaching creams to refrain from using products containing excessive hydroquinone to safeguard their health.

NAFDAC Bauchi State Coordinator, Mr Hamis Yahaya, advised in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Bauchi on Tuesday.

Hydroquinone is a skin-lightening agent used to treat hyperpigmentation, such as melasma and age spots.

Yahaya said that the approved quantity of the chemical substance in cosmetics was only two per cent.

According to him, NAFDAC conducts checks on market products to ensure public health and safety.

“The black colour provides natural protection against harmful radiation due to melanin content.

“Applying creams with hydroquinone contents more than two per cent is harmful. Mixing creams by non-experts is wrong.

“Hydroquinone affects the health of the users gradually, including causing cancer,” he said.

Yahaya urged the media to raise awareness about the dangers of cosmetics that could endanger consumer lives.

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AU Helicopter Crashes In Somali Capital – State Media

Published

1 day ago

July 2, 2025

Editor

An African Union helicopter crashed Wednesday at the airport in the Somali capital Mogadishu with eight people onboard, state media said.

The aircraft was part of the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), tasked with fighting the Al-Shabaab militant group.

The state media agency Sonna said the AUSSOM helicopter, carrying eight people, “crashed during landing at Mogadishu’s Aden Adde Airport this morning after departing Balidoogle”.

“The fire has been contained, and authorities are assessing the situation,” it said in a post on X.

Sonna quoted the country’s civil aviation authorities as saying that “flight operations remain normal”.

There were no further details given, but unverified clips and images shared online showed a plume of black smoke over the city.

The AUSSOM mission faces funding difficulties, even as fears of an Al-Shabaab resurgence are stoked by attacks in the Horn of Africa nation.