After initial resistance, Lagos panel members granted access to military hospital to inspect morgue

After initial resistance, members of the Lagos State Judicial Panel of Inquiry probing the October 20 shooting of #EndSARS protesters in the Lekki area of the state were on Friday evening granted access to the Military Hospital in Ikoyi by the management.

Soldiers manning the hospital had earlier chased out members of the panel who showed up at the facility unannounced to inspect its mortuary.

After they were allowed into the premises, the team was taken to the hospital’s morgue by a group of soldiers led by one Brig. Gen. A.I. Taiwo.

Taiwo told the panel led by Justice Doris Okwuobi (retd) that the morgue has been under renovation since October 2019.

He said: “This place has been under renovation since October last year.”

The panel’s chairman thanked the army officer and his men for their cooperation before they left the premises.

A member of the panel, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, (SAN), had earlier told journalists the team’s mission was to inspect the hospital’s mortuary.

READ ALSO: LEKKI SHOOTING: Soldiers chase out Lagos Panel members at military hospital

He said: “We got information impromptu. We could not give them notice because of the importance of what we want to do; it is an investigation. So, if we give information ahead of time that may jeopardise the essence of the investigation.

“We are exercising our mandate on behalf of the governor of Lagos State under the tribunals of inquiry law.

“We have already inspected the Lekki toll gate today and we decided to pay an unscheduled visit to the mortuary of the Military Hospital because we have confidential information concerning certain events that took place in the hospital here.

“We don’t want to make any conclusions yet until we have access to that mortuary to inspect it.

“We have a pathologist with us who is here to help us conduct a medical examination of bodies that we may find in the mortuary.”

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