Police fire tear gas at protesters in Abuja – TrendyNewsReporters

On Thursday, fully armed Nigerian police officers and men fired tear gas at a group of peaceful protesters around the outer cordon of Eagle Square in the Tri-Arms area of ​​Abuja.

The area of ​​the three arms, where the Eagle Square is located, is the seat of power as it hosts the Presidential Villa, the National Assembly and the Supreme Court, as well as the Federal Secretariat and the Head of the Federal Service.

The largely peaceful protesters called for an end to hunger, saying ulcers have become a common disease among Nigerians. They wondered whether police would shoot them, having previously provided security cover for a pro-government group days earlier. Although they dispersed around 8 a.m., they regrouped, calling on President Bola Tinubu to intervene.

However, around 10:30 am, while some journalists were trying to interview some protesters, a policeman fired a fuse shot in that direction.

While many fled in different directions, a young woman with a child went directly to the police and convinced them to kill her and the child.

The woman could not be immediately identified as police continued to fire tear gas at any civilian in their line of sight.

Earlier, there was a minor drama when the Minister of State for Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, arrived in the area to address the protesters. As much as he tried to speak, his voice was drowned out by the loud chants of “hunger dey” from the protesters, preventing the Minister from speaking. After he spoke to some of the protesters, describing himself as a comrade who had participated in well over 500 protests in the past, the protesters calmed down to listen.

“I’m not here to fight you. I’m not here to ask you not to protest. It’s your right. As I said, I’ve been to more than 100-500 protests,” he said.

He said he would contact the police regarding the firing of grenades at protesters.

However, it seems that his speech to the police was not respected, after the continuous shooting of canisters against the demonstrators.