DJ Switch caught in deadly Lagos protest

The protesters, who demanded an end to police brutality in the country under the #EndSARS campaign, had convened at the Lekki Toll Gate area despite an earlier-imposed, round-the-clock curfew announced by Lagos State governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

DJ Switch shared disturbing live footage of the shootings – including protesters removing a bullet from the leg of a wounded man – to her Instagram followers. “They shot peaceful people, they just shot us for nothing,” she said. “Please record this. Look at bullets, bullets everywhere, people are picking it from the floor. Please record this and share. We were able to escape because we went under a truck.”

“They started firing ammunition toward the crowd,” Alfred Ononugbo, another eyewitness, told Reuters. “They were firing into the crowd. I saw the bullet hit one or two persons.”

Amnesty International said it had received “credible but disturbing evidence of excessive use of force occasioning deaths of protesters at Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos.” The organisation’s spokersperson, Isa Sanusi, said in a separate statement that “people were killed at the toll gate by security forces,” adding that Amnesty International was “working on verifying how many.”

Tuesday’s protests formed part of nearly two weeks of nationwide demonstrations by Nigerians demanding police reforms, including the dissolution of the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (FSARS), commonly known as SARS. The unit has been accused of human rights violations including extortion, unlawful arrests and shootings. On 11 October, President Muhammadu Buhari announced the disbandment of SARS, but the move, together with the establishment of a new Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit to replace SARS, hardly appeased the protesters.

Protests have also been held in London and are often led by Nigerian celebrities including popular musicians Falz, Runtown, Tiwa Savage, Wizkid and Davido. Apart from taking to the streets, these artists and many of their colleagues have also employed social media to spark debates about police violence in Nigeria.

Burna Boy last week announced Project Protect, a relief fund for Nigerian victims of police brutality. Days later, on 12 October, Davido met with the inspector-general of police, Mohammed Adamu, to discuss the protests. At the meeting, the musician presented the demands of the protesters, which include the immediate release of those arrested as well as justice and compensation for the families of deceased victims. The singer also called for the creation of an independent body to oversee investigations and prosecutions of police misconduct, and for the psychological evaluation of officers before redeployment. Adamu assured Davido and the general public that reforms were already under way.

Meanwhile, the Lagos State government has ordered a probe into the Lekki shootings, with Sanwo-Olu advising the police to cease arrests on account of the curfew.