LAGOS, NIGERIA — Officers of the Nigeria Police Force on Tuesday morning fired canisters of tear gas to disperse political figures, journalists, and civil society activists gathered at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos State.
The security intervention disrupted a scheduled wreath-laying memorial organized by the Enough is Enough (EiE) movement to commemorate the sixth anniversary of the October 20, 2020, #EndSARS protests.
Among those caught in the tear gas barrage were African Democratic Congress (ADC) governorship candidate in Lagos State, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, and Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) gubernatorial candidate, Funso Doherty.
Disruption of Wreath-Laying Memorial
Participants and organizers had assembled early Tuesday morning to lay wreaths and pay tribute to victims of police brutality and those who lost their lives during the historic 2020 demonstrations at the toll plaza.
Eyewitness accounts and video footage from the venue showed police officers deployed to the strategic axis discharging teargas directly into the gathering before the ceremonial wreath-laying could be concluded. The sudden deployment sent participants, journalists, and passersby scrambling for safety along the Lekki–Epe Expressway.
Speaking after the disruption, eyewitnesses described the police action as an unprovoked assault on peaceful citizens exercising their fundamental rights to assemble and honor fallen countrymen.
Background and Heightened Security Deployment
The Lekki Toll Gate has remained a focal point of intense security monitoring every October 20 since the 2020 #EndSARS shootings.
Despite recurring demands by civil society organizations for accountability, compensation for victims, and systemic police reform, security forces have routinely restricted physical gatherings at the toll plaza on anniversary dates.
At the time of filing this report, neither the Lagos State Police Command nor the state government had issued an official statement regarding the tactical decision to use force against the peaceful gathering.
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