We Didn’t Shoot Any Protester Even Amidst Provocations – IGP Egbetokun
The Inspector General of Police Kayode Egbetokun has denied a claim that the officers of the Nigeria Police Force opened fire on the protesters across the country. He said that his men didn’t open fire on them as the police were professional even when the aggrieved Nigerians were violent in some parts of the country.
Nigerians, notably the organisers of the protests, have accused the police of using excessive force on the people. Ex vice president Alhaji Abubakar Atiku has condemned the police for not being professional. Peter Obi was also critical of the police for not protecting the people.
Online Parrot News had also reported how the police used teargas and live ammunition on the protesters at the Federal Secretariat, Abuja. Likewise there were some reports of violence in Kano, Kaduna and Borno State.
The IGP said, “The police and the military, indeed, no other security agency involved in the management of this protest has deployed excessive use of force. Instead, what we had was an attack on security agents during the protest.
“From our record, there was no shooting incident by the police. The police or the military did not use any live ammunition in the management of this protest. Instead, we have had cases where our officers were injured critically and they are still in critical condition in the hospital as we speak.
“So, I will dismiss that (allegations) as fake news. It is not true. It is a very wrong allegation. We didn’t use excessive force at all. We didn’t even deploy the whole of our strength in this protest, even when it turned violent.
“We have water cannons we didn’t deploy. We have rubber bullets we didn’t use. All that we have used in the management of this protest is teargas smoke and nothing more.”
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