Reactions as police bans peaceful protests in Nasarawa

From Daniel Abel Lafia

Peaceful protest by women in the state over an alleged controversial result of governorship election announced by NEC has attracted a ban by the Nasarawa police command on any group of protesters in the state.

Following state wide peaceful protest by women demanding INEC to announce the true winner of the March 18th governorship, Nasarawa state Police Command in a statement on Saturday to the general public banned any form of protest throughout the state.

“Therefore, all proposed protests under any guise are hereby prohibited.

The command said it took the decision in order to prevent the breakdown of law and order and to sustain the peace currently being enjoyed in the state.
The command further warned that anyone caught shall be arrested and prosecuted accordingly.
In a reaction, the state PDP chairman, Chief Francis Orogu said that it is unconstitutional for the police to ban peaceful protest by women who are dissatisfied with the electoral preccess.

“You can’t beat a child and tell the child not to cry. What the women are doing is what is done anywhere in the world. They are expressing their pain of being robbed of their votes.

“It’s sad that the police commissioner in Nasarawa state will ban a peaceful protest by women who did not desrupt any government or private activities in the state.

“It seems there is a conspiracy between the police and the APC to subvert the wishes of the people by all means. But the world is watching.
“This same police stopped us from gaining access to the collation center where the manipulation of result took place that night.

“The state Director of the DSS acted maturely when he called me to talk to the women to stop stripping nude while protesting.

“The saddest part is that Governor Sule is not even touched by women protesting naked but only accussing the women of collecting N500 to protest. Does he know what it means for older women to show their nudity in a protest? That is the culture of Kwarafa women when they are aggrieved”, Orogu stated.

Also Hon Labaran Maku, the former Minister of Information said that the police do not have the right to ban peaceful protest because peaceful protest is the constitutional right of citizens.

“We are aware governor Sule gave the police the order to ban the women from protesting peacefully across the state. You can’t stop people from embarking on peaceful protest when you have not done anything to address their grievances.

“Even during military rule citizens resisted ban on protest. When you ban people from engaging in peaceful protest you may be looking for some trouble that you may not be able to curtail.
However, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Nasarawa State has urged the opposition PDP to seek redress in the court of law if dissatisfied with the outcome of the governorship election in the state.

In a statement issued on Monday and signed by APC spokesman, Chief Douglas Otaru which was made available to journalists in Lafia, the APC urged the PDP to seek redress through the court rather than taking to the streets in nudity to protest the outcome the election.