Organisers of the October 1 protest against hardship in the country have insisted they would proceed with the ‘showdown’ despite kicks by the Federal Government and warning by the Nigerian Police Force.
A former presidential candidate and activist who is one of the leaders of the planned Oct 1 protest, Omoyele Sowore, gave an update on his social media platform X on Monday, insisting on the action, and saying it would be held across the country.
“NO GOING BACK! #FearlessInOctober”, he wrote on Monday.
The nationwide protest will hold at the Eagles Square Abuja, according to Sowore.
While giving the nature of the protest, Sowore said protests will be peaceful.
“The protests will hold across all parts of Nigeria because the scale of the devastation, hunger, insecurity, and hardship that this government has unleashed on Nigerians is national. I will emphasise again that these will be peaceful protests, as they’ve always been.
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“The last protests were peaceful, yet the government met the protesters with batons and bullets.
“We will not be deterred, though. Our only weapon is truth, and no amount of force or violence will prevent us from speaking truth to power,” he said.
The activist further said hunger pangs have spread across the country, adding that it was necessary for Nigerians to tropp out nationwide in protest.
“Between the last protest just two months ago and now, petrol prices have risen by almost N300 per litre. The naira has further devalued, and prices have increased in the market. Bandits have taken over and killed off entire communities. Floods are devastating our cities.
“Under these circumstances, can anyone be surprised that the Nigerian people want to voice their displeasure with this government’s failure to address the issues affecting them?
“We are prepared to come out to protest. We are determined to do so peacefully. I can assure you that thousands of voices will be raised in protest on October 1.
“The pangs of hunger and groans of pain of the Nigerian people will not be drowned out by the government,” he said during an interview session shared on his handle.”
Sowore’s insistence comes after the Nigerian Police Force said they had not been notified of any protest.
“We are fully prepared. Our organisers are on the ground and will not be going into hiding. These are revolutionary times, Nigerians will hit the streets en mass starting from 7 am on October 1,” he later said during an interview session shared on his X platform.
In Lagos, the protest organisers plan to commence their march at the Ikeja Under Bridge at 7:30 am.
In preparation to forestall any violence, the NPF across the country has started deploying its officers across the states to forestall violence.
The Niger State Police Command said it has deployed personnel and security assets.
On Sunday in Minna, the state capital, gun-wielding security operatives were stationed in some of the major places, including popular markets and road junctions.
The Niger State Police Command spokesman Wasiu Abiodun said, “The Niger State Police Command shall deploy an adequate number of personnel and operational assets for public safety and orderliness. The state Commissioner of Police, Shawulu Danmamman, directed Area Commanders, Tactical Commanders and DPOs to ensure that police visibility was enhanced in their various areas to avert any act of breach of public peace.
“The Command had also engaged labour leaders, trades unions, youth and students leaders in the state and other critical stakeholders towards ensuring and sustaining the relative peace that is being enjoyed for economic growth and development of the state.”
The Kano State Police Command also confirmed to have deployed its personnel to strategic positions.
In Kaduna, the state police command also said it has taken proactive measures to prevent potential violence during the planned protest in the state.
The Kogi State Commissioner of Police, Bethrand Onuoha, advised organisers of the protest to reconsider their plan and give government more time to fix the nation’s economy.
Onuoha stated this on Saturday while engaging with members of the Take It Back Movement, Kogi State chapter at the command’s headquarters in Lokoja.
A statement on Sunday by the PPRO, Kogi Command, William Aya, read in part, “The CP advised the group to reconsider their planned protest and give government more time to fix the economy of our dear nation.”
Security personnel are also preparing in other regions in the country, according to findings.
The National Director of the Take It Back Movement, Juwon Sanyaolu, said preparations for the protest were in “top gear”, noting that they had no plans to go underground as they had done noting wrong, despite the repressive measures by the Tinubu-led administration.
“Preparations are in top gear nationwide and we are going to be coming out on Tuesday, October 1 as scheduled, not just to exercise our constitutional right to protest, but to restate our opposition to the neo-liberal direction of Tinubu’s government. We have no plans of going underground, we have not committed any offense. We are well within our rights and within the ambit of the law”.
“So we are organising openly, and we are doing that despite repressive measures by the Tinubu-led government. But we are not bothered by that because we haven’t committed any offence. If there’s anyone in the wrong, it is the Tinubu regime who have chosen to turn deaf ears to the yearnings and the demand of the Nigerian people, and the Police institution that continue to violate the constitutional right of the people through its repressive measures. But nonetheless we are not detered, and the protest will go on as scheduled”.
Similarly, Director of Mobilization for the Take It Back Movement, Damilare Adenola, stated “I’m going nowhere. Protest is not a crime. I will not run, having done nothing wrong.”
Publicity Secretary, Take It Back Movement in Rivers State, Andy Akpotive said the protest was aimed at bringing leaders in the country to accountability.
Akpotive stated, “We are insisting that October 1, 2024 provides us the opportunity, the window, the latitude to come out again and say we will refuse to be cowed, we will refuse to be slaves. We refuse to be kept under in our land where we share equal rights, even with leadership.”
Meanwhile, the Lagos State Government has maintained that the court directive restricting protests to two designated venues in Lagos still stands.
The state reiterated this as organisers gear up for the upcoming October 1, 2024 protest in Lagos and other states.
Advising organisers to avoid disrupting social and economic activities in the state, the Lagos State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro (SAN) while responding to questions from journalists on Sunday, emphasised that the governor’s instructions to the Commissioner of Police for maintaining public safety remain in effect.