Security operatives on Thursday morning barricaded the main entrance of the National Assembly complex in Abuja, effectively preventing access by protesters gathered to mark June 12, Nigeria’s Democracy Day.
The protest, spearheaded by the Take It Back Movement in collaboration with various civil society organisations, is part of a nationwide demonstration aimed at drawing attention to what organisers have described as “two years of misrule, hardship, and insecurity” under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Initially planned to take place at Eagle Square, organisers later redirected the protest to the National Assembly, where President Tinubu is expected to address a joint session of lawmakers as part of the Democracy Day celebrations.
Speaking on the eve of the protest, National Coordinator of the Take It Back Movement, Juwon Sanyaolu, clarified that the shift in venue did not alter the demonstration’s objectives.
“That we earlier said the protest would hold at Eagle Square doesn’t foreclose the fact that Nigerians cannot organise themselves at the National Assembly to protest the two years of misrule under Tinubu,” Sanyaolu said.
“The unprecedented hardship and insecurity we have experienced under his government are alarming. So Nigerians will be turning out nationwide to protest against this, and the National Assembly is one of those spaces Nigerians can exercise their constitutional rights. We are encouraging Nigerians to move there in their numbers tomorrow,” he added.
Access to the complex was blocked with iron barricades and a large truck stationed across the entrance, creating a tense atmosphere that persisted at the time of filing this report.
