Fears, Panic Trail Nationwide Protest In Kano, Other Northern States As Looting, Vandalization Reign

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

Strong indications have emerged that unless the organizers of the ongoing nationwide #EndBadGovernance protest, stakeholders and security agencies produce uncanny dexterity in crowd control and crisis management, the exercise is poised to produce unintended results in most parts of Northern Nigeria.

Fears are rife, that the much touted peaceful protest, may snowball into violent demonstrations when the people congregate for the Jumat prayers on Friday.

The high apprehension of   possible violent eruptions are premised on the high level of hunger and general hardship among a larger part of the populace.

Not a few are doubting the abilities of both the protest organizers and security agencies to manage the situation, post Friday prayers.

Already, on day one of the protest was overshadowed by invasions, vandalizations and outright looting of some public facilities by mostly hunger-ravaged participants .

More of such hunger- induced wanton destructions are expected from day two, unless there is a change of approach and/or an outright suspension of the protest.

In Kano on Thursday, protesters vented their frustrations on the multi million naira National Communication Commission NCC-ICT edifice.

The building just awaiting commissioning was raided bare by scavenging protesters.

An attempt was also  made to penetrate the Kano State seat of power, just a  trekking distance by same protesters. They were resisted by Security Agents.

Elsewhere, economic activities, both private and public, bore the brunt of day one of the protest march in the commercial centre of  Northern region.

On his official site ,the Minister of Digital Economy Bosun Tijani, lamented the destruction of the NCC building located on State Road Nassarawa area of Kano .

He described the vandalization as a huge set back to efforts to empower the youths through technology.

“Sad to learn that our Digital Innovation Park in Kano slated for launch next week to support our technical talent accelerator (3MTT) has been set ablaze and looted by protesters .

“Along side #3MTT, this building is set to host our  buildathon holiday maker programme for secondary school kids starting next week.

“A slight setback for our journey to deepen our workforce for technology while creating job opportunities for the youths. Millions of Naira down the drain”, the Minister lamented .

The Kano State Police Command said about 13 persons have been arrested for alleged destruction and vandalization of some vehicles at the High Court premises.

The Commissioner of Police, CP Salma Dogo Garba, who announced the arrest, also, noted that some proactive measures are in place to guarantee the protection of lives and properties of residents.

“The police in collaboration with sister security agencies are conducting intensive patrols to guarantee the safety of the residents and protesters.

“The collaboration aims to maintain law and order in the state during the duration of the protest.” CP Garba stated.

Nonetheless, the police ,and other Security Agencies may have to think out of the box to be able to contain the situation, particularly the one that may be presented before, during, and after Friday prayers.