The Integrity Youth Alliance, an organisation that has been monitoring the development trends in the Nigeria Police Force for over 15 years, has blasted the Kaduna-based Human Rights Activist, Senator Shehu Sani, for misquoting the Inspector General of Police, IGP Kayode Egbetokun, for saying, “The only way a protester can submit his name and address to the police is when he is charmed or ‘jazzed’ by a priest or a native doctor.”.
According to a press release on Monday, 29th July 2024, signed by the Alliance’s Board Chairman, Comrade Adewole Kehinde, times without number, the Inspector General of Police, IGP Kayode Egbetokun, has said that the request to identify the organisers of the August scheduled protest is not out of place, given its innate duty to ensure safety and order during the demonstration nationwide.
“So we don’t know whether Senator Shehu Sani is now a native doctor looking for protesters to charm or ‘jazz’.
“We want to remind the Senator that the propagation of false information is a significant issue that Nigerians have faced and continue to face. If we are not careful, it will ignite another crisis.
“We just have to be careful in action at this critical time, Adewole said.
Swift Reporters reported on Friday that the IGP urged all groups planning to protest to, provide necessary details to the Commissioner of Police in the state where the protest is intended to take place to facilitate a successful and incident-free protest.
These details include proposed protest routes and assembly points; expected duration of the protest; names and contact details of protest leaders and organisers; and measures to prevent hijacking by criminal elements, including key identifiers for possible isolation of potential troublemakers.
The request by the police is a sequel to unknown groups planning to protest against an end to bad governance, hunger, and bad policies.
The protest, which is scheduled for 10 days in August, is gaining momentum despite pleas by the federal government and security agencies to halt the process.
