AS residents of the Federal Capital Territory head out on the Day 2 of the #EndBadGovernace protest to continue with their demonstration, security operatives have opened tear gas on them in some part of the nation’s capital.
The police used teargas to disperse protesters around the MKO Abiola Stadium, where the the FCT High Court had restricted the protesters.
The ICIR learnt that some protesters, who gathered at Berger, along Wuse road, were planning to march to Eagle Square when heavily-armed security operatives in the area responded by shooting teargas at them.
This led to a confrontation between the security operatives and the protesters.
Some demonstrators were injured in the process.
The ICIR reports that this was exactly the case in Abuja when the protest kicked-off on Monday, August 1, when the protesters marched towards the Eagle Square.
The protesters were shot with teargas by the security operatives who were stationed at the facility to repel the protesters, while expressing their grievances with solidarity songs and placards at the road leading to the Eagle Square.
The officers also blocked other popular places leading to the area.
The ICIR’s team observed that the police fired dozens of canisters into the crowds, affecting not only the protesters but also the media practitioners.
Meanwhile, a human rights lawyer, Deji Adeyanju has blamed the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, for harassment of protesters and journalists at Berger, Friday morning.
At the MKO Abiola were dozens of protesters who were demanding that the government end bad governance and reverse policies that have brought hardship to many Nigerians.
Currently, the #EndBadGovernace protest has spread to about 15 states.
The organisers are protesting poor governance and economic hardships caused by President Bola Tinubu’s reforms.
The posts and tweets on the protest carry different hashtags, ranging from #RevolutionNow, #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria, #TakeItBack, #DaysofRage and #TinubuMustGo.
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: [email protected]. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M