#EndBadGovernanceInNigeria: Police arrest protest leader in Abuja

Men of Nigeria’s State Security Service (SSS) midnight Sunday arrested a leader of one of the groups mobilising for the ongoing 10-day nationwide protest, Michael Lenin.

Mr Lenin is the national coordinator of the Youths Rights Campaign.

The Director of Mobilisation for the Take It Back Movement, Damilare Adenola, confirmed this to PREMIUM TIMES on Monday morning.

He said the secret police arrested Mr Lenin at midnight in his Apo-Dutse residence in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city.

He added that lawyers were already making efforts to get Mr Lenin out.

Mr Lenin’s comments on Tinubu’s address

Mr Lenin had on Sunday held a press conference reacting to President Bola Tinubu’s nationwide address, describing it as empty and urged protesters to troop out on Monday.

He said Mr Tinubu was “out of touch” with the masses’ reality and the protesters’ demands.

He said Mr Tinubu’s description of the protests as politically motivated is an attempt to “call a dog a bad name so that it could be harmed”.

He noted that the protests have been largely faceless and leaderless because they were spontaneous responses to the deep economic crisis experienced by Nigerians.

“The insistence that the protests are politically motivated shows a deep disconnection with the masses,” he said on Sunday.

He said the economic achievement listed by Mr Tinubu is for himself and his cronies and doesn’t reflect the reality of the Nigerian masses.

He added that Mr Tinubu’s address did not address any of the protester’s demands.

“Tomorrow, we will be out en masse. Our people will be out to further the protests because the protests continue. As we all recall, it is a 10-day protest,” he said.

Protest continues

Since Thursday, Nigerians have taken to the streets to protest hardship and demand an end to “bad governance”.

The protest, which began on Thursday, 1 August, is expected to continue until Saturday, 10 August, according to the organisers.

In Abuja, the police tear-gassed protesters on the first day of the protest at Eagles Square. On the third day, the police and SSS officials fired teargas and live bullets at unarmed protesters and journalists covering the protests at the Moshood Abiola Stadium, a supposed approved location for the protest, according to a controversial court order.