Abuja Traders Prevent Policemen From Rearresting Social Media Influencer After Protest Against Widespread Hunger
Chaos erupted at the bustling Wuse Market in Abuja on Thursday as police officers attempted to re-arrest a social media influencer popularly known as Flag Boy in his shop.
Flag Boy was on Monday arrested for holding a solo protest, brandishing a sign that read, “Hunger Dey OOO!” (meaning “There is hunger” in pidgin English).
But on Thursday, there was a move to rearrest the social media influencer. The incident sparked outrage among traders, who gathered in large numbers, shouting “Hungry dey oh! Is there no hunger in Nigeria? Why arrest someone for exercising their right to protest against the unbearable hunger in the country?”
The crowd prevented the arrest and accused the Nigeria Police Force of trying to silence citizens from speaking out against poor leadership, chanting, “It will not happen!”
The scene was captured in several videos seen by SaharaReporters.
One of the voices in the crowd shouted, “I haven’t eaten since morning oh! This is the worst government in Nigeria. What do they want from us? They (political leaders) will be killing us and they won’t allow us to complain. This is not democracy. Military junta is now better oh!”
It was gathered that the lasted for some minutes as police operatives insisted they must take him along, saying that was the instruction given to them by the Divisional Police Officer of Wuse station.
Flag Boy in one of the videos said, “Nigerians make una see, police come meet me for my place of work and said that DPO of their station wants to see me. I told them that I will call the DPO on phone that he already called me before.
“The next thing, this man here (pointing to a man in mufti) come ‘jack’ (manhandled) me. See how he scatter my clothes. I asked them is it arrest they want to arrest me or invite they want invite to me because if you come to invite me, according to Constitution, I have a right to tell you when I will acknowledge your invitation.
“But if you are here to arrest me show me your arrest warrant and I will kindly follow you. I am a law-abiding citizen and I have not committed any crime to warrant police on plainclothes coming to hijack me in my place of work without saying what I have done.”
Meanwhile, earlier before the incident, the social media influencer in a message, said his life was in danger.
He said the DPO of Wuse Zone 3 wanted to arrest him again after he was released on Monday for protesting against the widespread hunger in the land.
In his message, he said: “My life is in danger I can’t sleep in my house the Nigerian police want to arrest me again I was arrested on Monday because I did a one man protest on Monday saying hungry Dey ooo and I was arrested and was released that same day so yesterday.
“The DPO of Wuse Zone 3 called me that he needed to see me so I can come and get my flags. So I said okay that I am coming but I am busy now that I will come later once I’m done with what I am doing. So he kept on calling. I said sorry sir I am coming. So he sent two of his boys to my place of work at Wuse Market to come and get me.”
However, when he spoke to SaharaReporters on Friday, he said the matter has been resolved.
“The traders did not allow the police to arrest me on Thursday. I called some people and they later got in touch with the police commissioner; that was how it was resolved.
“I was told that after I was released on Monday, they heard that some people protested somewhere and thought I was there. I think they later did their investigation and found out I was not there,” he said
