Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the current governor of Lagos state, in an interview on Arise TV on Tuesday, March 8, 2023, made some claims about his handling of the 2020 EndSARS.
Sanwo-Olu, who is seeking re-election for a second term, answered several questions, one of which was about his role in the October 2020 End-SARS protest. Responding to the questions, he claimed to have a number of “firsts” among the other governors.
In his words: “I was the first governor to go there and meet with them… I was the first that set up a tribunal and a panel, in all of these things I was the first, first, first.”
Claim I: Sanwo-Olu claimed that he was the first governor to meet with EndSARS protesters.
Verification
CDD Election War Room investigated this claim and discovered that Sanwo-Olu did, in fact, meet with the protesters on October 12, 2020, when they besieged the Lagos State House of Assembly, but his attempts to communicate with them were met with jeers.
He also met with protesters at Lekki Toll Gate on the same day, where he acknowledged the demands of the protesters.
We also discovered that Seyi Makinde, the governor of Oyo State, met with and addressed the protesters in front of the Agodi secretariat in Ibadan, the state’s capital, on that same day, October 12, 2020.
However, on October 10, 2020, Makinde addressed the protest and the killings that occurred during the protest in his state via a statement on his social media handles.
Verdict
The claim that Sanwo-Olu is the first governor to meet and speak with protesters is true. However, Makinde had on October 10, 2022, issued a statement addressed to the protesters in Oyo.
Claim II: Sanwo-Olu claimed that he was the first governor to set up an EndSARS tribunal Panel.
Verification
According to data from CLEEN Foundation’s website and confirmed by this report on the Lagos State website, Lagos State’s tribunal was inaugurated on October 19, 2020, while Anambra’s inquisition tribunal was inaugurated three days earlier, on October 16, 2020.
Kogi, Ogun and Plateau state panels were also inaugurated before Lagos did the same.
Centre For Law Enforcement Education (CLEEN) Foundation is an NGO that promotes public safety, security, and justice.
Verdict
The claim that Sanwo-Olu was the first governor to establish an EndSARS Tribunal is false.