Mr Macaroni demands justice for slain journalist, Pelumi Onifade

Nigerian skit maker and actor, Adebowale Adedayo, also known as Mr Macaroni, has dedicated this year’s #EndSARS protest anniversary to Pelumi Onifade, a young journalist killed during the October 2020 demonstrations.

In a statement posted on X, Mr Macaroni, who participated in the protest, noted that the killers of the promising journalist have not been apprehended and the Lagos State Government has failed to release his remains for burial.

I am dedicating this Year’s EndSars Anniversary to Pelumi Onifade; a young promising journalist who was arrested and killed in detention for recording the video of a Nigerian Politician shooting at EndSars Protesters.
Four years later, Justice has not been served in the matter… pic.twitter.com/epuISXm2Gv

— Mr Macaroni (@mrmacaronii) October 20, 2024

“I am dedicating this Year’s EndSars Anniversary to Pelumi Onifade; a young promising journalist who was arrested and killed in detention for recording the video of a Nigerian Politician shooting at EndSars Protesters.

“Four years later, justice has not been served in the matter of Pelumi Onifade. The Lagos State Government has also refused to release his body to his family. This injustice must come to an end!!!,” he said.

#EndSARS protest

Sparked by social media campaign demanding justice for a young man allegedly killed by officers of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), the #EndSARS protest quickly gained momentum.

By 8 October 2020, demonstrators, mostly the youths, poured into the streets and occupied major roads to protest extrajudicial killings by men of the police special unit, SARS.

The Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) was established in 1992 as a specialised unit within the Nigerian Police Force to combat serious crimes such as robbery, motor vehicle theft, kidnapping, cattle rustling, and firearms.

Barely a week after, the protest which started peacefully, was hijacked by hoodlums. They looted shops and storage facilities, damaged government properties, and coordinated jailbreaks.

Owing to the outbreak of violence amid the #EndSARS protests, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu imposed a 24-hour curfew in the state.

Soldiers were soon deployed to the major protest ground at the Lekki Toll Gate. It was reported that live ammunition was fired, leaving at least 46 unarmed protesters either dead or seriously injured, according to the Lagos State Judicial Panel of Inquiry on Restitution for Victims of SARS-Related Abuses and other matters in its 309-page report.

20-year-old Onifade killed

Amid the chaos, hoodlums continued to exploit the situation. They unleashed mayhem on residents and looted buildings suspected to house valuable items.

On Saturday, 24 October 2020, Pelumi Onifade, an intern at GboahTV and undergraduate of Tai Solarin University of Education, was assigned to cover a break-in by hoodlums at a government facility in Abattoir, Oko Oba area of Agege, Lagos.

However, the situation soon turned tense when officers of the Nigerian Police Force shot at the crowd. According to a report by PREMIUM TIMES, a source within the station’s management revealed that Mr Onifade was hit despite wearing a jacket that identified him as a journalist.

His body was later found at a mortuary in Ikorodu, Lagos.

Long road to justice

After years of seeking justice for her slain son, Bose Onifade, mother of the late journalist, has seen a glimmer of hope appear.

The Lagos State Government instituted a coroner’s inquest into the wrongful death of Mr Onifade.

The judicial inquiry began on 17 October 2024, three months after the Federal High Court ordered it in response to a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the Media Rights Agenda against the Lagos State Government and the Nigeria Police Force.

READ ALSO: Court orders Lagos govt to investigate journalist’s death, prosecute killers

The inquest, which is presided over by District Coroner Taiwo Oladele, aims to “uncover the truth, assign responsibility for his death, if necessary, and provide his family with closure”, according to a statement by the Media Rights Agenda.

Following concerns raised by Mrs Onifade regarding the location of her slain son’s body, and the family’s futile efforts to secure the release of his corpse, Mr Oladele directed that official records and documentation regarding the body’s transfer be obtained from the task force.

According to the Media Rights Agenda, at least 19 Nigerian journalists have been brutally murdered since the country transitioned to democracy in 1999.