Protesters Vow to Resist Emergency Rule, Demand Reinstatement of Fubara
Violence broke out in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, on Monday morning as police operatives fired teargas canisters to disperse peaceful protesters and reportedly arrested several journalists covering the protest.
The demonstrators, under the aegis of the Take It Back movement, Rivers Civil Society Organisations, Niger Delta Congress, and South-South Youths Initiative, had converged at the Isaac Boro Park and were marching towards the Federal Secretariat along the Aba–Port Harcourt expressway when the police halted their procession near the CFC flyover.
The protest was in response to the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, the Rivers State House of Assembly, and the rumored imposition of an emergency rule in the state.
Speaking shortly after the protest, the Spokesperson of the Coalition of Rivers Civil Society Organisations, Solomon Lenu, condemned the police action, describing it as “a rape on democracy.”
> “There is no reason whatsoever why an elected government will be suspended for no just cause,” Lenu said. “This is a democracy, not a dictatorship.”
He called on Rivers residents to rise in defense of their democratic rights, adding that the suspension of their elected governor amounted to a direct attack on the will of the people.
The Rivers State Coordinator of the Take It Back Movement, Amanye King, also faulted the police for dispersing the peaceful protest.
> “We are here to express our grievances, not to cause harm,” King said. “The unconstitutional removal of our elected governor and lawmakers is unacceptable. We have a social contract with the governor, not with any Sole Administrator.”
Nwala Chetam, who spoke on behalf of the Niger Delta Congress, narrated how the police initially approved the protest venue, only to disrupt the procession violently.
> “We had an agreement with the police. They assured us of protection. But when we began our march, they blocked our path and started firing tear gas. One protester was even shot and is now hospitalized,” he alleged.
> “This is nothing but an attempt to silence the voice of reason. We will not be intimidated, even if it costs us our lives.”
The President of the South-South Youths Initiative (SSYI), Saviour Oscar, claimed he received threats from the police and DSS not to participate in the protest.
> “I was told I would be shot if I joined the protest,” Oscar revealed in a statement. “But that threat won’t stop us. We are already mobilising for a larger protest to reject this anti-democratic takeover.”
Oscar accused the Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd), of dismantling democratic institutions in Rivers at the behest of Abuja politicians.
> “President Tinubu is not more Nigerian than the rest of us,” he said. “We will not be governed by dictatorship disguised as democracy.”
Journalists Assaulted, Arrested
Charles Opurum, Channels Television’s Rivers correspondent, was among the journalists arrested. He recounted how he was beaten and dragged into a van despite identifying himself with his press ID.
> “They kept slapping and beating me, saying even journalists must obey their orders,” Opurum said. “It took the intervention of officers who recognized me to secure my release.”
The Rivers State Police Command is yet to issue an official statement regarding Monday’s incident.
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