Former presidential candidate and African Action Congress (AAC) leader, Omoyele Sowore, has condemned the police attack on protesters demanding the release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, in Abuja on Monday.
Speaking during an interview on Arise Television’s Prime Time, Sowore, who convened the #FreeNnamdiKanu protest, said the demonstrators were targeted precisely because they chose a peaceful approach.
“The protest was not only on social media. It happened across Abuja. We had six major spots where thousands of people gathered,” he said. “We were at Utako, Gudu, and Apo, which had the largest crowd, and then we moved to the FCT Police Command, where we were ruthlessly tear-gassed.”
According to him, the police would not have confronted them if they were violent actors.
“Police attacked us because we were peaceful protesters. If we were bandits, they would not come near us,” he said.
Sowore, a long-time human rights activist, added that while his generation has chosen non-violence, future generations may not be as patient in confronting injustice.
“Fortunately, we have chosen a no-violence approach to resolving issues,” he said. “But a generation will come that will not accept this nonsense.”
