Five years after the tragic events at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos, where peaceful #EndSARS protesters were reportedly shot by Nigerian security forces, the human rights organisation Global Rights has issued a powerful statement demanding accountability, justice, and meaningful reform.
In its reflection on the October 20, 2020 killings, executive director of Global Rights, Abiodun Baiyewu, in a statement made available to journalists to commemorate the event, emphasized that the failure to hold people accountable for the bloodshed on that day had deepened public mistrust in the Nigerian government and signaled a dangerous erosion of democracy.
“The currency of democracy is trust,” she said , “trust that those elected will govern in good faith and uphold the welfare and security of all citizens.”
That trust, she noted, was severely undermined when security agents opened fire on protesters who were waving the Nigerian flag and singing the national anthem — symbolic acts of peaceful dissent.
“Five years later, accountability for this gross crime against Nigeria’s democracy remains elusive,” Baiyewu said, adding that the government’s failure to act on the findings of various judicial panels of inquiry “has left the wounds of 20.10.20 fresh and unhealed.”
The #EndSARS protests, which initially focused on police brutality, quickly evolved into a broader call for justice, governance reform, and accountability.
Protesters issued five clear demands: justice for victims of police abuse, compensation for affected families, creation of independent oversight bodies, reform of policing practices, and better welfare for law enforcement personnel.
But Global Rights has argued that these demands have largely gone unanswered. Instead, the government has retained repressive tendencies, evident during the 2024 #EndBadGovernance protests, during which at least 30 citizens were reportedly killed and dozens more — including minors — arrested, with some children made to face treason charges for waving foreign flags.
“The haunting images of malnourished children standing trial for protesting are a stain on our national conscience,” Baiyewu said. “They are just as indelible as the memories of October 20, 2020.”
Global Rights drew parallels between Nigeria and other countries where youth-led protests are shaping democratic discourse.
“Across the world — from Kenya to Nepal to Madagascar — young people are rising to demand justice and better governance,” the statement said. “While some governments respond with repression, others have chosen dialogue and reform, realizing that protests are not threats, but the purest expression of democracy in action.”
In contrast, it noted, Nigeria’s civic space has continued to shrink.
Global Rights further condemned the weaponisation of laws such as the Cybercrime Act to target journalists, activists, and everyday citizens for expressing dissenting views online.
“This practice erodes the very foundation of our democracy and sends a dangerous message — that freedom of expression exists only on paper,” she said.
The fear of state violence, the group said, now keeps many citizens from participating in protests.
“During the 2024 protests, many stayed home not because they no longer cared, but because they feared their own government,” Baiyewu noted. “This is not the hallmark of a thriving democracy. It is a warning that Nigeria’s democracy is on tenterhooks.”
Global Rights used the anniversary to reiterate its demands to the Nigerian government. Chief among them is accountability: the arrest and prosecution of those who ordered and carried out the Lekki shootings, and of those who have obstructed justice in the aftermath. The group also called for police reform, beginning with the full implementation of the recommendations from the judicial panels.
In addition, the organisation urged the government to ensure respect for fundamental rights, including freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, and to end the misuse of legal frameworks like the Cybercrime Act. It emphasised that law enforcement must be trained to manage protests in ways that are rights-respecting and compliant with democratic norms.
“No government enjoys criticism,” Baiyewu acknowledged, “but strong democracies use it as feedback. The right to protest is not a privilege granted by the state; it is a right that protects the state from tyranny.”
As protests continue to shape global civic engagement, Global Rights warned that Nigeria must learn from its past, not repeat it.
“We must never again allow our nation to descend into the darkness of October 20, 2020,” the statement concluded. “Justice delayed is democracy denied.”
