Jigawa Protesters Defy Dutse Monarch, Attack Govt. House, Destroy Tinubu, Namadi billboards

…Also vandalise APC Secretariat, Security Agencies engage protesters

By Mohammed Abubakar Dutse

Security agencies in Jigawa state were taken unawares of the outcome of the first day of the #EndBadGovernance protest which erupted in the state capital, Dutse on Thursday.
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The protest, which started on peaceful note with a handful of protesters later turned violent, when protesters went to the Government House, the seat of government.

Another major victim of the youths wrath was the APC Secretariat in the state capital.

The build up to the protest started at about 8:00 am, when they started gathering at the Eid-praying ground.later they started marching in the major streets in the state capital, such as Ibrahim Aliyu Bypass through the popular Police Round About and ended up at the Government House in Dutse.

The protest, saw tens of placard-carrying youths and women with various inscriptions such as “Return our fuel subsidy’; “We’re tired, we’re hungry”; “Tinubu must resign”; “Bamuayi’ meaning, “We don’t want it again,” among others.

Vandalised APC Secretariat in Dutse, Jigawa State

The action is coming on the heels of the last minute appeal by the emir of Dutse, Hamim Nuhu Muhammad Sanusi on the residents to shun the demonstration which he claimed would not yield any positive results, but would end up escalating the situation.

Apart from Dutse, the state capital, reports indicated that similar protest took place in such major towns across the state such as Ringim, Kazaure, Hadejia and Gumel.

While the residents during the commissioning of the Gwari Water project on Wednesday, on the eve of the commencement of the protest, where the governor was present, the monarch advised people with grievances to route same through laid down channels up to the governor and president.

His words,”I want to draw your attention to the fact that there are some people who have planned a protest in order to cause disorder and cause an unnecessary panic amongst the people so they can attack the government.

“The governor and the president are humans like any other persons and there is nobody, who would consciously inflict pains on their people.. Therefore, we should leave everything in the hands of Almighty Allah and only Him can solve our economic problem.

“So, Nigerians should continue to pray to God to solve our problems. But for us now to come and protest to demonstrate our anger is not the solution, so if you have any problem you have your councillors, traditional rulers, chairmen,all of these people have access to the appropriate quarters to lay your complaints, so, I’m appealing to you to air your grievamces.”

But all the emir’s appeal appear to have fallen on deaf ears as the protesters took to route to the Government House to have audience with the governor, Umar Namadi.

On their way, they vandalised so many bill. boards of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the governor, that are strategically located in some parts of the state capital.

At the main gate of the Government House, the youths disagreed with the combined security agents that are maning the gate.The request of the protesters to have the governor address them personally did not sit well with the security agencies, who claimed that the governor was not available to address them. As the situation degenerated, the Police started using teargas canisters to disperse the protesters.

The protesters later on descended on the State Secretariat of the All Progressives Congress, (APC) along Abdullahi Maikano Way in the state capital, where they vandalised it and stole virtually all valuable materials such airconditioners plastic chairs in the premises, including the bill boards of the party’s leaders both at the national and state levels.

The arrival of two fully loaded police personnel saved the building from being set ablaze. Later on, the military arrived at the party secretariat.

Though some of the miscreants were arrested at the party’s Secretariat it was not clear if there were other arrests in some other parts of the town, as the spokesperson of the Jigawa State Police Command, DSP Lawan Shishu Adam did not answer calls into his mobile phone, neither did he return the calls.

Meanwhile unconfirmed report indicated that at least two persons have so far been shot, the first at Government House, while the second shooting took place at Shuarin in Kiyawa local government.