JUST IN: Tension In Nigerian Police Headquarters
There is tension in the air as the civic organization, Take It Back Movement, has concluded plans to stage a protest at the Nigeria Police Force Headquarters, Louis Edet House, Abuja.
The group called on Nigerians to join the protest by 9a.m. today.
A statement from the group reads: “Join us tomorrow at the force headquarters Abuja as we begin series of mass campaigns to put a permanent end to police extortions, and lawless roadblocks across the country. #EndPoliceExtortion.”
The protest was organized after a recent incident involving Omoyele Sowore, the convener of the group, who was summoned by the police for questioning after recording a video during an altercation with police officers in Lagos.
The police had invited Sowore for questioning over the video.
In the invitation letter dated January 23, 2025 and signed by CP Ibitoye Rufus Alajide, Commissioner of Police (OPS), on behalf of the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Force Intelligence Department (FID), Abuja, the police asked Sowore to report on Monday, January 27, 2025, for an interview with the DIG.
However, in a surprising turn of events, armed police officers arrested one of the protest organizers, Henry Nwodo, on Sunday night at the Ruga-Fulani village in Abuja.
Eyewitnesses alleged that Nwodo was beaten, his phone seized, and he was forced into a black car with no number plates.
Nwodo’s housemate, Emiola Osifeso, stated that the activist had gone to the night market to purchase rice for dinner when the police arrested him.
Osifeso believes that Nwodo’s arrest is connected to the planned protest at the police headquarters, adding that some residents said the vigilante officers in the area outed him to the police.
The protest, tagged #EndPoliceExtortion, is expected to go ahead as planned, despite Nwodo’s arrest. The movement is calling on Nigerians to join the demonstration and demand an end to police brutality and extortion.
