Security personnel from the Nigeria Police Force have halted a protest in Maitama area of Abuja after attacking the participants and shooting teargas cannisters at the demonstrators to disperse them.
The protest which began without incident, descended into disorder when police officers used tear gas to disperse the crowd, claiming that they had been cautioned not to embark on the protest.
Eyewitnesses narrated that the protesters, to avoid sustaining severe injuries, they fled the scene in different directions as the situation grew tense.
The rally, organised by the Take-It-Back Movement in collaboration with various civil society groups, was led by former Presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, as part of a broader nationwide campaign highlighting pressing national issues.
Demonstrators armed with placards baring bold and different inscriptions including “Stop the Repression” and “Let Us Breathe” as they moved through parts of the Federal Capital Territory.
The protesters expressed frustration over the country’s deteriorating economic situation, the perceived abuse of the Cybercrime Act, and the political crisis unfolding in Rivers State, which they referred to as a “state of emergency.”
In a statement issued prior to the protest, National Coordinator of the Take-It-Back Movement, Juwon Sanyaolu, described the demonstration as a response to “growing authoritarianism” in the country.
He called for urgent interventions to tackle inflation, insecurity, and other socio-political problems.
