Despite assurances from Police Inspector General Mr. Kayode Egbetokun,
Police fired tear gas canisters at a small group of peaceful protesters gathered near Eagle Square, Abuja, on Thursday in the Three Arms Zone.
Eagle Square, located in the Three Arms Zone, serves as the hub of Nigeria’s federal power, housing important institutions like the Presidential Villa, the National Assembly, the Supreme Court, the Federal Secretariat, and the Office of the Head of Service.
The demonstrators, who had maintained a peaceful tone, called for an end to widespread hunger.
After being initially dispersed at 8 a.m., the protesters reconvened, appealing to President Bola Tinubu to intervene and address their concerns.
However, when journalists attempted to conduct interviews with some of the demonstrators at approximately 10:30 a.m., a police officer suddenly fired a tear gas canister in their direction, disrupting the scene.
While many fled in different directions, a young woman with a baby went straight to the policemen, daring them to kill her and the baby.
Earlier, the Minister of State for Youth Development, Mr. Ayodele Olawande, arrived at the protest scene to engage with the demonstrators.
However, the protesters’ thunderous chants of “hunger dey” (meaning “there is hunger”) overwhelmed his voice, thwarting his attempts to address the crowd.
After engaging with some of the protesters and introducing himself as a fellow comrade with a long history of activism, having attended over 500 protests in the past, the crowd gradually quieted down to hear him out.
He said: “I am not here to confront or suppress you. I’m not here to dissuade you from exercising your right to protest. In fact, I have been part of this struggle, having attended numerous protests myself over 100-500 times.”
He promised to speak with the police about the shooting of tear gas canisters at protesters.
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