Nigerians Defy 24-hour Curfew, Continue Protest Against Hardship On Second Day
Hundreds of youths continued their protest against hardship for a second day in parts of Dutse, Jigawa State, despite a 24-hour curfew imposed by the state government.
Security agencies clashed with protesters around Zai, blocking them from accessing commercial areas and major buildings.
A Zai Quarters resident stated that thousands of youths, chanting anti-government slogans, resisted tear gas used by security forces to disperse them, Leadership reports.
In Shuwarin, on Dutse’s outskirts, thousands of youths regrouped and resumed demonstrations. Heavy security blocked their attempts to enter the capital and used tear gas to disperse them.
An eyewitness confirmed that police arrested several youths, including minors, on Friday.
In Gumel town, the situation remained relatively calm as security agents blocked major roads and prevented regrouping, though the limited number of operatives struggled to control the crowd for long.
It was earlier today reported that Jigawa State Governor Umar Namadi has declared a 24-hour indefinite curfew following the escalation of violence during the nationwide protests on Thursday.
In a personal announcement, Governor Namadi justified the curfew by stating that Jigawa is a Muslim-majority state, where protests are deemed un-Islamic and contrary to local culture and tradition.
He emphasised that Muslims believe only Allah (God) has the power to cause hardship, implying that human actions, such as protests, are ineffective in addressing grievances.
The governor said, “Today we woke up to a serious protest. That is not part of our culture and tradition. We feel that this protest will not be a solution to what people are demanding and are asking for.
“We are all Muslims and we believe nobody in this world can put hardship on us except Allah, and it is only Allah that rescues us from hardship.
“Therefore, protest is not a solution and should not be a solution.
“We realised how people use small boys to achieve their objective of vandalising and stealing people’s properties. This is not part of our culture and tradition.
“Therefore, we feel as a government, we will not allow this thing to continue unabated and as a result of that, from now, we are introducing a 24-hour curfew in Jigawa State.
“This curfew will continue up to the time we have reviewed the situation with the security agencies and we feel like it is time to relax it.
“For the sake of Friday, we are relaxing the curfew from 12pm to 2:30pm to allow people to go to the Mosques and pray for the state and for the nation. After 2:30pm, the curfew will continue.
“We pray that people will obey this curfew and ensure that they stay at home and observe the curfew.”
Similarly, protesters in Kano’s Minjibir Local Government Area defied a 24-hour curfew to voice their discontent. They marched through the local government headquarters, holding placards with various messages about the country’s hardships.
Resident Tasiu Minjibir reported to Vanguard that the demonstration was peaceful, with protesters calling for the reversal of the fuel subsidy removal.
Governor Abba Yusuf imposed the curfew on Thursday evening after hoodlums armed with weapons disrupted an earlier protest.
Naija News House reported yesterday that The Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf has imposed a 24-hour curfew due to worsening hunger protests.
The announcement was made during a press conference at the Government House on Thursday afternoon.
Governor Yusuf explained, “After careful consideration, we have decided on a 24-hour curfew to prevent looting, vandalism, and the killing of innocent citizens.”
The governor instructed all security agencies to enforce the curfew fully, aiming to restore peace and order in the state.
