The Lagos State Police Command has denied reports that its officers fired tear gas at pensioners during a protest at the Lagos State House of Assembly in Alausa on Monday.
The command, in a statement on Tuesday, described the allegation as false and misleading, insisting that no tear gas was used during the protest.
It also said a photograph circulating on social media and purportedly showing pensioners being teargassed was generated using artificial intelligence and did not reflect what happened at the protest venue.
The controversy followed reports that police allegedly disrupted the protest by using tear gas, prompting human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), to demand the arrest and prosecution of the officers allegedly involved.
The pensioners had gathered at the Lagos State Government Secretariat and the House of Assembly complex to demand outstanding pension adjustments, consequential increases and wage awards from the state government.
The dispute between the retired public servants and the Lagos State Government has persisted over payments which the pensioners say remain outstanding.
However, the police said about 500 members of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Lagos State Council, arrived at the Governor’s Office in Alausa, Ikeja, around 8:30am on Monday for what it described as a peaceful protest.
The protesters were led by the NUP chairman, Michael Omishade, and the Nigeria Labour Congress chairperson, Agnes Funmi Sesse.
The command said personnel from the Rapid Response Squad, Lagos State Taskforce, Eko Strike Force and various divisional formations were deployed to maintain law and order and protect the protesters and other members of the public.
The security operation, according to the police, was coordinated by the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Operations.
The protesters were subsequently addressed by the Chief of Staff to the Lagos State Governor, Tayo Akinmade Ayinde, before NUP executives proceeded to an indoor meeting at the Governor’s Conference Hall.
The meeting lasted about three hours, after which the protesters dispersed peacefully around 4:30pm, with the police reporting no adverse incident.
The command’s spokesperson, Abimbola Adebisi, said, “Not a single canister of tear gas was fired throughout the duration of the protest.”
The police statement, titled, “NUP protest: No tear gas fired, circulating image is AI-generated,” further urged members of the public to stop circulating unverified information capable of misleading the public, creating unnecessary tension or undermining confidence in the police.
The command said the State Commissioner of Police, Tijani Fatai, remained committed to protecting citizens’ rights to peaceful assembly and expression.
Meanwhile, the pensioners are expected to meet Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu later in the week to present their demands and seek a resolution to the outstanding pension-related issues.
