The Hidden atrocities of the Buhari era — Shehu Sani

In a scathing condemnation of what he termed “hidden atrocities” of the Buhari administration, Senator Shehu Sani has shed light on the killing of 103 EndSARS protesters in Lagos and the 2015 massacre of Shiite members in Zaria, Kaduna State.

The former senator made his remarks on Twitter shortly after an unsettling memo from the Lagos State government surfaced, indicating the approval of N61 million for the mass burial of the victims of the October 20, 2020 EndSARS crisis.

Senator Sani’s post on social media drew attention to the tragic events that unfolded in Zaria in 2015 when over a thousand members of the Islamic Movement were brutally killed on the orders of the then military Chief of Army Staff (COAS).

He emphasized that the killings were publicly supported by the then Governor of Kaduna State, with the general public being encouraged through hateful propaganda to show callous disrespect to the victims by marching and dancing on their corpses while searching for valuables in their pockets.

The victims of the Zaria massacre, including women and children, were subjected to unimaginable horrors as their bullet-riddled and charred remains were reportedly buried in mass graves in Kaduna State.

The sole accusation against them was that they had “blocked the road” in protest against the Army chief.

Drawing parallels to the tragic events of the EndSARS protests in Lagos, Senator Sani expressed his deep concern for the 103 protesters who lost their lives during the unrest. He deemed their deaths as one of the “hidden atrocities” of the Buhari era, implying that the gravity of the incident has not been adequately addressed or brought to justice.

The Senator’s poignant post on Twitter has reignited discussions about justice and accountability for the victims of these grave human rights violations. He firmly asserted that the spirits of those murdered, whether in Zaria or during the Lekki gate incident, will continue to haunt Nigeria and loom over the country until justice is served.

The memo from the Lagos State government, which came to light in the aftermath of Senator Sani’s tweet, has added further weight to the ongoing debate surrounding the EndSARS crisis and the need for a comprehensive investigation into the tragic events that transpired in October 2020.