Renowned human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mr. Femi Falana, has expressed serious concern over claims that police officers deployed expired teargas canisters during a recent protest against alleged illegal demolitions and forced evictions in the Makoko waterfront area of Lagos.

Falana described the police response as unconstitutional, hazardous and a clear infringement on citizens’ right to peaceful assembly. He made the remarks while visiting injured protesters at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH).

The protest, coordinated by activists Comrade Hassan Taiwo, widely known as Soweto, and Mr. Dele Frank, was organised to draw the attention of the Lagos State Government to alleged unlawful demolitions and forced evictions affecting waterfront communities. Although the demonstration reportedly began peacefully, it allegedly escalated after police officers fired teargas canisters at close range.

As a result, several protesters sustained injuries, drawing widespread criticism from human rights advocates and civil society groups. At LASUTH, Falana was briefed on the condition of one of the injured protesters, Mrs. Kafayat Muftaudeen, by a Burns and Plastic Nurse, Mr. Adedeji Hassan.

Hassan explained that Mrs. Muftaudeen, who suffered a serious leg injury, had been discharged but would continue treatment through routine wound dressing and weekly hospital visits before undergoing surgery. He added that she would later require skin grafting once the wound healed properly. According to him, the decision to discharge her was based on medical considerations rather than financial constraints, noting that recovery could be better managed at home under professional supervision.

The nurse also disclosed that another protester injured during the incident, whose condition was shown in footage aired by CNN, had likewise been discharged.

Reacting to the injuries he observed, Falana described them as disturbing and abnormal. He noted that in over four decades of participating in protests nationwide, he had never encountered teargas injuries of such severity. He suggested that the nature of the wounds raised suspicions that expired teargas canisters might have been used.

Falana reaffirmed that the 1999 Constitution guarantees freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, stressing that citizens do not require police permits to stage protests. He referenced the Court of Appeal ruling in All Nigeria Peoples Party v. Inspector-General of Police, which upheld the right to peaceful protest and declared police permit requirements a colonial-era practice.

According to him, the Police Establishment Act only mandates protest organisers to notify the police, who are then obligated to provide security. He stated that the organisers complied with this requirement, as police officers peacefully escorted the protesters from Ikeja Under Bridge to the Alausa Secretariat.

He explained that tensions arose when no government official came out to receive a letter addressed to the Lagos State Governor, after which the police allegedly dispersed the protesters with teargas over songs deemed offensive.

Falana maintained that singing abusive or vulgar songs does not amount to a criminal offence under Nigerian law, emphasising that public officials must tolerate criticism in a democratic system. He called on authorities to draw lessons from the incident and respect citizens’ fundamental rights, warning against the use of force to silence peaceful protests.