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PROTEST REPORT BY CAMPAIGN AGAINST POLICE BRUTALITY, EXTORTION AND KILLING OF INNOCENT CITIZENS



Tuesday March 22nd, 2016 on the very hour of 6:30am, which was generally agreed in the last meeting of 20th March, 2016 (Sunday) that the people should
be on ground by 7:00am, residents, the okada riders from the affiliate of NURTW: MOALS, ANCOWA and AOMORAN including activists, socialists fighters from DSM, AICOM, JUSTICE GROUP etc. were already on ground to give leadership in terms of methods and strategy to the protest under the broad platform of CAPBEKIC (Campaign Against Police Brutality, Extortion and Killing of Innocent Citizens) to campaign against the unlawful harassment, extortion and killing of people by the Nigerian police.

The protest materials like placards, mega phone, banners among others were being arranged to commence the protest. In some of the placards fly higher in hands by okada riders, residents and comrades participating in the struggle before the kickoff hour; had the inscription of (i) okada, keke and danfo don become ATM machine fo police. (ii) Stop the incessant killing of innocent citizens. (iii) FG must compensate the family of Saturday’s Hanson, Charles Okafor. (iv) Minimum wage of #52, 500 should be paid to the police and all workers. (v) Fight for a police democratic workers union.

While this was going on with solidarity songs been chanted by peaceful protesters between the hours of 7:00am to 8:00am in the kickoff point in the community where the protest was to roll on. There was sensitization and orientation about the method and strategy as guide for the protest to be successful was well articulated by comrade Dagga (a member of DSM) who addresses the people in the community, okada riders and other unions and organizations that formed the coalition. That the importance of this was to register our plight against the long exercise of the Ajeromi police in extortion, brutality, killing among others. Also, general appeal was made by leaders of CAPBEKIC that that participating okada riders in this struggle shouldn’t disrupt or forcefully mobilize any riders to join the protest. 

Before the kickoff, the comrade with the mega phone (Dagga) added as an inspiration to the okada riders and congratulated them for joining the peaceful protest and despite the fact that the police have tried to demoralize members through their union leaders. Even to the extent of using the tactics of “divide and rule” to psychologically influence the struggle through the feudal lords (Seriki, Bale), still they were able to mobilize themselves to come for the protest of today. This, the comrade said is significant in history because it confirmed the potential of them, the okada riders; enlisting the incisive fact of the community leaders, especially the Hausa community made up of unemployed youth been in sighted not to participate in the peaceful protest; were an attempt made by these feudal lords.


But in congratulating the potential effort of this protesters coming out this morning even with the attempt by the police to stop the protest, the riders were also admonished that everybody participating in the protest should be peaceful and cooperate with members of the leadership as we head towards different destination where we are going to summit our protest letter which were as follows : HOUSE OF THE DECEASED FAMILY, IFELODUN LOCAL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AREA (LCDA), AJEROMI LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA (AJIF) AND AREA B POLICE COMMAND, APAPA: supervising all the police unit of Ajeromi, Layeni, Pako, Tolu, Mosafejo-Amukoko police stations.

At about exactly 8:30am the protest began and leaders of CAPEKIC, okada riders, members of the community moved en mass to the house of SATURDAY HANSON to console, prayed and delivered the petition letter to the family. When the protesters arrived led by leaders of CAPEKIC at the house of SATURDAY HANSON. Residents of the community who one way or the other had suffered indifferently in the hands of police on harassment, extortion and illegal raiding, came out in their numbers to sympathize with the decease family and showed solidarity with the struggle on the need why the protest to put an end to killing of people by Nigerian police should go to exposed the atrocities committed.

Immediately the news got to the widow (Mrs. Hanson with five children) in her room where she resides 17 Fatokun via Ogbokwankwo, Ajegunle, she came wiping and look in the banner that carried her husband’s picture and those killed by the Nigeria police men, the tears in her eyes dropped like rainfall. It was at this point that some leaders of CAPEKIC had to take her in to console her and she later came out to listen to the address made by comrade Dagga, and prayer was led by Mr. Israel Eke . Immediately, these sharp statement were made on why the police were responsible for the killing of Saturday Hanson, a copy of the OPEN PETITON LETTER was handed over to Mrs. Hanson who received it with pool of tears in her eyes.


PROTEST ROUTE:

(I)                 IFELODUN LOCAL COUNCIL DEVELOPMENT AREA (LCDA)
With the embolden movement of the peaceful protest of protesters, moving from the populated dense street with placards, chanting solidarity songs while the banners were boldly displayed. The solidarity songs became an attraction including the banner to residents in the communities who were asking questions about what was going on ,  concerning the protest as protesters were marching down to the LCDA government to register their plight over chronic killing of innocent citizens and the government negligence not doing anything to resolve this problem of police brutality and extortion.

Marching through the streets in Mosafejo-Amukoko areas, some of the printed and electronic press representatives like Commoners, the SUN and Guardian newspapers; including Galaxy and Lagos television respectively were marching with the protesters to the different destination in the protest. Youth, activists who marched together from the kickoff point of the protest, went to the onlookers to explain the significant of the protest to them and the need in their respective communities why they shouldn’t hesitate not to join and also begin to mobilize themselves peacefully against police brutality and illicit raiding. Members of DSM and her sympathizers who were in the protest took it upon themselves to thoroughly canvass people to buy the new publication of the SD (April/May); making people to see the reason why this publication represent their interest as working oppressed people.

At the LCDA Secretariat, leaders of CAPEKIC addresses the protesters and the entire resident in that community on what this struggle significantly mean to the working mass of Ajegunle. Comrade Hassan Taiwo (a member of ERC) after a brief introduction done by Moshood Oshunferuwa (Sec. of CAPEKIC); gave some speech on why the killing of Saturday Hanson was barbaric by the Ajeromi police men on the irrational account of them embarking on illegal raiding. 

In the burning fire of his statement in front gate of LCDA secretariat with the peaceful protesters   against the forceful extortion on them. He rolled a perspective as brimstone that the government should not shift side never to play proactive role in attaining to the need of decease family. The point also was made as some journalists and reporters made effort to covered the protest, that the Minimum Wage of #52, 500 should be an agenda in the government policy, not also glance the fact of provision of social welfare of the police rank and file workers, which has been responsible to the incessant killing of people then and now. 

Immediately after the speech, some leaders of CAPEKIC representatives, journalists and reporters led by DSM members went inside the LCDA Secretariat to deliver the PETITION LETTER to the representative of the Executive Secretary (ES) that states all the demands of CAPEKIC and why residents, okada riders and the oppressed mass are opposed and dissatisfy with illegal extortion and raiding of the police, and government negligence on this matter even when council levy has been paid for the day.

(II)               AT THE AJEROMI LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA (AJIF)

At the Ajeromi local government a lot of okada riders joined in the protest as they trouped into the council in their numbers with their bikes packed outside as directed by the leaders of CAPEKIC, enjoining all into the chanted solidarity songs, which has been a lead to the peaceful protest organized and coordinated by leaders of different organizations making up the coalition of CAPEKIC.

Addressing the masses, comrade Dagga narrated how SATURDAY HANSON was killed, the extortion going on in the community, and also made an appeal to the representative of the Executive Secretary (ES) and other team along with him to both financially and materially assist the widow with five children left behind by SATURDAY HANSON, who was cold bloodedly murdered by the Ajeromi police men.

After much has been said the PETITION LETTER was well received by Mr. MUDASHIRU AFOLAYAN who represented the Ajeromi Executive Secretary (ES). In his response after receiving the PETITION LETTER, Mr. MUDASHIRU AFOLAYAN said the Executive Secretary was away on an official assignment and promised to deliver the petition to him and advised that the peaceful way and manner we came should be maintained to our final destination. Intermittently, some other media houses like Vanguard newspaper and Super Screen television invited to covered the 22nd March, 2016 protest also were present to report the story and  some okada riders were interviewed  about their experience on this issue.


(III)             THE MARCHED TO AREA B POLICE COMMAND, APAPA

As the struggle builds momentum in the rank and file of the oppressed protesters alongside the solidarity songs that continue to earn attraction as wave from the people in the community, more of the okada riders at Boundary roundabout joined in the protest after much addresses has been made by leaders of CAPEKIC, activists and socialist fighters on this matter. Some of the okada riders lament their pathetic different experience suffered terribly in the hands of the police at Boundary between the hours of 7:00pm to 11:00pm (Monday to Friday) in Ajegunle. As the addresses were going on members of DSM were  busy selling the SD in the busiest Boundary market. 

After exhausting 20 minutes in the square, the protesters were directed by some leaders of CAPEKIC to march down to Area B police station which was the collective agreed end point of the protest before the kickoff.  At the Area B police station, the gate was locked against the peaceful protesters, afraid of any expectation. But the organized and coordinated movement of the rally/protest never recorded any form of violence and anarchism in the whole 6 hours of the protest. It was all solidarity songs, displayed of banners and placards bearing different slogans and demands against the harassment and brutalization of innocent working class families.

For the 30 minutes spent at the front gate of Area B police station, neither the Area Commander nor representative came to address the okada riders, journalists, reporters waiting to hear a statement from the authority. It was after much pressure from the unrelenting fighters chanting an increment of the solidarity songs that some representative of CAPEKIC were allowed to go in to dropped the letter without the commander showing his face. However, after this has been done, leaders of CAPEKIC addressed the okada riders on the forward for the struggle. 

At the kickoff venue of the protest a fighting fund of #1, 800:00 was raised among the okada riders to support the struggle for continuity and a brief meeting was reached upon with a collective resolution that on 26th March, 2016 (Saturday), a general meeting shall be held to review the protest, lessons to be drawn and plan ahead new method and strategy to sustain the struggle. And with the enormous effort put in place by members of DSM, 40 copies of the SD was sold in the whole 6 hours of the protest against police brutality and extortion in the Ajegunle ghetto community.

By
Tuned Yusuf and Fidel Davynovich (the freelance report)

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