Bad governance protest: Terrorists killed protesters, not police, says muyiwa adejobi
The Nigeria Police Force has denied killing any protesters in the ongoing bad governance protest across the country, adding that those reported dead during the protest were killed by terrorists, local vigilante and a reckless driver who ran his car into a crowd.
Penpushing reports that the Force Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi made this known in a statement it posted to X handle, reacting to a Friday statement by Amnesty International which accused security personnel of killing at least 13 people during the protest.
The police in its own account, said seven and not 13 persons died and that they were not killed by law enforcement operatives, adding that terrorist who infiltrated the crowd of protesters detonated an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in Bornu state
‘In Borno State, four (4) individuals lost their lives and thirty-four (34) were severely injured in a terrorist attack by suspected Boko Haram/ISWAP elements who infiltrated the crowd of protesters and detonated an Improvised Explosive Device (IED)’, Adejobi wrote.
“Additionally, an incident occurred involving an unregistered Honda Prelude car that ran into the protesters, resulting in the deaths of two (2) civilians. The driver abandoned the vehicle and fled the scene. Although the vehicle was vandalized after the incident, it has been recovered and is currently in police custody. Efforts are ongoing to trace the driver and bring him to justice’, he added.
‘There was another incident reported in Yauri, in Yauri Local Government Area of Kebbi State where a group of individuals mobilized to loot a shop. In the process, a local vigilante man shot and killed one of the looters. The Commissioner of Police in charge of Kebbi State is currently investigating the incident. This brings the total number of deaths recorded during the protests to seven (7)’, Adejobi stated
Penpushing further reports that he said nine of its officers suffered various degrees of injuries during attacks by protesters, adding that at 681 individuals have so far been arrested during the ongoing protest.
The protesters are accused of various criminal offences such as armed robbery, arson, mischief, and destructions of both public and private property, while police claimed that dangerous weapons were recovered.
‘Dangerous weapons, including two (2) AK-47 rifles and assorted live ammunition, were recovered from the so-called protesters. Additionally, stolen items such as furniture, electronics, phones, other various shop items, and vital infrastructures worth billions of naira were recovered from the arrested persons’, he said.
‘Contrary to circulating news, organizers of the protest or protesters were not arrested. Those in police custody are under investigation for clear connections to criminal activities’, Adejobi emphasized in the statement
‘The Nigeria Police Force finds it necessary to refute a recent report publicized by Amnesty International, which claims that thirteen (13) individuals have lost their lives due to the protests in Nigeria that began on 1st August 2024. Amnesty International further alleges that security personnel deliberately employed tactics designed to kill while managing gatherings and used firearms as a tactical tool for protest management’, he added.
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