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-Cars, motorcycles adorn leaves as protesting youths play football, music on roads
-Residents trek long distances
-Protesters storm Secretariat with calabash, threaten unconducive environment for election
By: Wale Akinselure
Youths in Ogbomoso and Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, blocked major roads of the city in protest against the prevailing new naira notes scarcity.
Road junctions in and out of Sango, Mokola, Sabo, University of Ibadan, Eleyele, New Garage, Orita-Challenge, Molete, Ajibode, Aleshinloye, Veterinary, Bodija, Ologuneru, Ijokodo, Iwo Road among other parts of Ibadan have been barricaded by the protesting youths.
Upon barricading the major roads, the youths are having a field day erecting posts, playing football on the roads, while also entertaining themselves with hiphop music.
On vehicles and motorcycles maneuvering the inner roads are leaves, just as some residents themselves are holding up leaves to show solidarity with the protest.
As a result of the protest, many residents are trekking distances, with several venting their anger at the situation, including raining curses on the government, they described as confused.
Describing the situation as hugely unbearable, the youths swore that Wednesday’s protest was a tip of the iceberg.
Another set of protesters, mostly traders, owners of small and medium scale enterprises, also stormed the State Secretariat, Ibadan in protest against the naira scarcity.
The protesters, carrying a calabash containing sacrifice-like items, lamented the hardship faced as a result of the rejection of the old naira notes for business transactions while the new notes are scarce.
They blasted governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele and President Muhammadu Buhari, noting that the current situation inflicted hunger, inability to provide for their families.
They described as unimaginable having to pay N2000 as POS charge to collect N10,000.
They warned that should the current situation continue, they would make the environment unconducive for the conduct of the forthcoming elections.
For several hours, security personnel, especially those of the Nigeria Police, Amotekun, Operation Burst patrolled the areas of the protest action, while there remained heavy security presence at main entrance of the State Secretariat.
Wednesday’s action is a sequel to series of protests that have occurred in Ibadan in the last two weeks.
To restore normalcy, a combined team of commanders of the Army, police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Nigeria Immigration Service, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Operation Burst embarked on a tour across Ibadan, where they saw to the clearing of the various barricades and bonfires.
Addressing journalists after the tour, Special Adviser to Governor Seyi Makinde on Security, Mr Fatai Oseni said security operatives went out to ensure that hoodlums to not take advantage of a peaceful protest to unleash members of the public.
Owoseni spoke alongside Brigadier General A.A. Tawasimi of the Nigeria Army; Deputy Commandant, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Patunola Timothy; Commander, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Abdullahi Saheed; Director General, Oyo State Joint Security Task Force, also called Operation Burst, Colonel James Oladipo (retd.); Deputy Comptroller, Immigration, Odesola Oyebode; Director, Department of State Services, Mr Emmanuel Okoye.
Speaking, Owoseni said the state and security agencies were adopting “non-kinetic” means to handle a delicate situation but stressed that the operatives will not fold its arms to allow criminals pursue their agenda with the peaceful protest.
He said the foot soldiers of the various security agencies would be on ground to prevent an escalation of a peaceful action into violence, adding that the security personnel will be firm on all hoodlums and criminals that rear their heads.
Owoseni said: “The state will be firm; the commanders will be firm on hoodlums and criminals that want to take advantage of the situation while peaceful protest would be managed in a way that it would not degenerate.
“Security operatives are out there to ensure that hoodlums don’t take advantage of the peaceful protest of some people to unleash violence on members of the public.
“We don’t want hoodlums to take advantage of this and turn the state into a place where they will say there is no law and order.
“We have seen some barricade and the people that we met at the barricades voluntarily removed it.
“It is non-kinetic means that the state will want to be using in order to address situation. It is a delicate thing. Everybody is feeling the impact.
“These are peasants that want to earn their livelihood and we have to careful in handling situations like these. The security commanders have assured that non-kinetic means will be used, and they will not allow any criminal to take advantage of the situation.”
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