The organisers of the planned #EndBadGovernance protest scheduled to start from Thursday, August 1, have advised the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Kayode Egbetokun, to ensure he control street hoodlums and thugs rather than bother about the protesters.
‘Focus on thugs, ours will be peaceful’, one of the leaders of the protest organisers, A human rights advocate, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, SAN, told the IGP at a virtual meeting on Tuesday, and insisted on taking to the streets across Nigeria after rejecting a proposal by the Police chief for confined protests.
At a meeting with the organisers, the IGP suggested confined protests in identified locations and advised against street rallies.
The senior lawyer who represented the #TakeitBackMovement, one of the promoters of the proposed nationwide hunger protest, had notified the Nigerian Police of the designated venues for the demonstration.
Adegboruwa listed the proposed protest locations yesterday in response to a request for a meeting by Mr. Egbetokun.
The IGP had requested a meeting with the senior lawyer at the Force Headquarters in Abuja to deliberate further on his request seeking police protection for the protesters.
Adegboruwa listed the protest venues as Eagle Square in Abuja; Alausa Park by Secretariat in Lagos; Rosewale Filling Station, Iwo Road in Ibadan; Freedom Park, Oshogbo.
Others are Opposite School of Agric, Bauchi, along Tafawa Balewa Road; Opposite Wema Bank, Akpakpava Lane, Benin City; Maiduguri Roundabout; opposite State Stadium, Damaturu, Yobe State and Rainbow Roundabout and Pantani Stadium in Rivers State.
Adegboruwa asked that the meeting be expanded to include a broader range of stakeholders and be conducted virtually to facilitate wider participation.
The letter read in part: “We shall be glad to have the contact details of the Deputy Inspectors-General of Police, Assistant Inspectors-General of Police and the Commissioners of Police designated to cover the said public meetings, public rallies and public processions, to ensure a peaceful and crisis-free outing.
“We shall update you with further details in the course of time, hoping that the above information suffices for planning and strategy. We are delighted to attend the meeting with the Inspector-General of Police as requested.
“However, in order to achieve enlarged participation, we request that the said meeting be held virtually, in order to give room for all stakeholders to attend”, he said.
It was learnt that human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), some representatives of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), other lawyers, civil society organisations as well as some arrowheads of the planned protests attended the virtual meeting held yesterday.
It’s not wise to take the street- IGP
During the meeting, the IGP said: “It is not advisable to go on street processions because as you are planning a protest, some are planning violence.”
According to the IGP, some persons calling for violence during the forthcoming protest have been arrested.
“Confining peaceful protesters to particular locations will help us a lot,” the IGP said, sounding the alarm that terror elements are looking to infiltrate crowds to wreak havoc.
‘Focus on thugs, ours will be peaceful’
But, Adegboruwa reportedly rejected the proposal of the IGP, even as other notable people that attended the meeting also insisted on taking to the streets.
He had said: “Our letter to the Inspector General of Police indicates that there will be processions that will be guided to achieve peace during the protests,” he said, noting that leaders will also make speeches on the days of the protest. Also, Adegboruwa said the attention of the police should be focused on thugs and groups threatening fire and brimstone. He said the organisers cannot give a specific number of people who would participate in the protest as Nigerians have been invited to join the rallies.
The senior lawyer reportedly assured the IGP that the organisers are not destructive.
Egbetokun subsequently said the police would provide security cover for protesters at confined locations sent to the Force Headquarters.
“I will not be able to guarantee security for your members if you embark on street processions.
“I believe that a peaceful protest in a confined location will be safe”, the IGP said. The police boss quickly added that if commissioners of police in states across the Federation have enough manpower, they could deploy their men to guard protesters during street processions.
He advised the organisers to contact police top brass in their various locations to notify them of their requests for security cover during street processions and confined protest. (With Agency Reports)
