In defiance of warnings by security agents , the Yoruba Nation Mega Rally went ahead as planned, Saturday, July 3, 2021, with at least one person reportedly shot dead and tear gas freely used by security operatives in their bid to disperse the rally.
Organisers of the rally, the umbrella body of Yoruba Self-Determination Groups, Ilana Omo Oodua (IOO), had gone ahead with the program at the Ojota area of Lagos after failed attempts to convince the security team to allow them use the Gani Fawehinmi park for what they insisted was going to be a peaceful rally.
The security team had cordoned off the Park with more than 30 trucks and fully armed security personnel.
In the midst of the confusion that ensued, with water cannons and tear gas being fired to disperse the crowd, a teenage girl, said to be a youghurt seller, simply identified as Jumoke, was killed, allegedly by bullets said to have been fired by a security agent.
There was no evidence that Chief Sunday Adeyemo aka Igboho attended or addressed the rally as had been widely advertised.
The program started off on a peaceful note with singing of solidarity songs and dancing but became chaotic when the security operatives began firing tear gas and water cannons with the aim of dispersing the crowd.
Igboho, who has since become a rallying figure for the self determination struggle had been declared wanted by the Directorate of State Services (DSS) after the invasion of his residence in Ibadan, Oyo State.
