Twenty-three-year-old Olalekan Faleye, a survivor of the
shooting that attended the peaceful #ENDSARS protest at Lekki Toll Gate in
Lagos, says he has become an amputee after the gunshot injuries he sustained to
the leg on Tuesday, October 20, 2020.
He had undergone surgical amputation of his bullet-ridden
right leg.
The shooting incident had attracted national and
international outcry, with the Lagos State and Federal governments being urged
to unravel the identity of the shooters and who deployed them.
Speaking with PUNCH a few days after
he was discharged from the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi, Lagos,
Olalekan said until the Lekki shooting, he had temporarily worked as a labourer
with a construction company in Ikoyi to raise money for his ‘freedom’ as an
apprentice cobbler.
He also planned to use whatever was left after his freedom
ceremony to rent a shop where he could carry out his cobbler trade.
“Any time we had little or nothing to do at the construction
site, I would join the #ENDSARS protesters at Lekki Toll Gate to demonstrate
against Police brutality and bad governance.
“I recalled attending the protest on three different
occasions (October 15, 16 and 17) before the soldiers’ invasion on October 20,”
he said.
Struck by soldiers’ bullet
Looking pale and sad, he struggled to recollect the incident of the Black Tuesday, saying the whole episode still feels like a bad dream.
“They (soldiers) arrived in a group and, without warning,
started shooting at us. As people ran helter-skelter, I recalled hearing the
protest coordinators screaming, ‘Don’t panic, sit on the floor together and
keep waving the Nigerian flag.’
“But it was too late. People panicked when they saw the
soldiers advancing and shooting at us.
“In the panic that ensued, I was hit on the right leg by a
stray bullet. The force of the shot was so intense that I found myself on the
ground, writhing in pain and with so much blood gushing out of my leg.
“I was there for some seconds, feeling weak and fatigued,
before some fellow protesters came to my rescue. I was held by both hands and
legs as they continued running while also dodging the flying bullets,” he said.
Olalekan disclosed that after his bullet-riddled leg was
tied up with what looked like a shirt, he was rushed along with three other
victims of the shooting to Vedic Hospital in Lekki.
“At Vedic, I was denied admission when the medical official
saw the state of my bloodied leg,” he alleged.
The 23-year-old said he kept getting weaker as he was being
conveyed by the rescue team in search of another hospital.
“That was how I ended up at Grandville Trauma Centre. After
examining the leg, one of the doctors who attended to me announced that my limb
was in a sorry state because the high-velocity projectile forcefully pierced
through the muscles and blood vessels in my leg from one end before coming out
at the other end.
“Consequently, I was asked to drop the contact of my parent
or guardian because of the complex nature of my case,” he said.
Olalekan’s diagnosis at Grandville
Olalekan’s medical statement, which was written on Grandville’s letterhead and secured by our correspondent, states, “To whom it may concern, OLALEKAN FALEYE MALE/23 years. The above-named patient presented to our facility four days ago (20/10/2020) around 23.28pm due to a gunshot injury to his (R) leg in about 2 hours after the incident.
“He sustained this injury as a result of his involvement in
the #ENDSARS protest that occurred at the Lekki toll gate.
“He was initially taken to Vedic Hospital and then brought
in here for further management.
“On presentation, GCS 15/15 O2 Sat; 98% pain and severe
bleeding from the gunshot site with a point of entry and exit of the bullet. He
was unable to lift his leg and move his toes.
“Diagnosis made was (i) leg injury from gunshot (ii)
imminent compartment syndrome.”
The medical paper which was signed by a certain Dr. Adebayo
and countersigned by Dr. Umukoro further reads, “An exploratory fasciotomy was
done on the right lower limb to litigate severed blood vessels. Five units of
packed RBCs were transfused over the course of admission as the patient came in
with Hb of 5.6g/cll. No pulse (dorsal pedis, tibia post and ant. Arteries) was
felt.
“Patient was placed on antibiotics (IV Rocephin, IV Flagyl,
treated for malaria (Im arthemeter 160mg) and analgesics.
“Patients relatives have been counselled on the need for an
amputation of the patient’s leg but they would need a second opinion. For
further clarifications and enquiries, kindly call the hospital.”
Experts say a fasciotomy or fasciectomy is a surgical
limb-saving procedure when used to treat acute compartment syndrome.
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if this is verified then the Nigerian Arny should be commended for the high level of professionalism it exhibited in the lekki shooting not to have recorded one death! this is amazing!!!
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