A Channels TV journalist was among those shot by the Nigerian Police Force during a protest staged by Shi’ites of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria on Monday in Abuja.
Reports say the police used live ammunition on the protesters who were demanding the release of their leader, Sheik Ibrahim El-zakzaky.
A NEMA emergency station and several vehicles were burnt down by the protesters who were determined to make their way to the National Assembly which was cordoned off by the police.
Reacting to the protest, Garba Shehu, a Senior Special Assistant to President Buhari, said:
“Those guys are not intelligent. If they had read our statement correctly, they would have seen an olive branch. What is the government saying? We are still open to dialogue and we are willing to abide by adjudication by the court of law,” he said.
“If the Nigerian government says, ‘Our hands are off that case’ (and) the Attorney-General and Ministry of Justice says, ‘We no longer have a hand’; if those guys were intelligent, they should be celebrating this.
“But assembling women and young kids and teaching them nothing to do other than insult President Muhammadu Buhari and the leaders of this country and you think that will take you somewhere?
“No, I’m sorry, those guys need to think and determine what is right for themselves. If the government were to use force, it is present. But by the decision of the President, we don’t push too hard and they shouldn’t push the government to the wall.
“If they decide otherwise and they want to continue attacking the National Assembly, throwing stones at the police and burning down police vehicles and they think the army and the police are meek and powerless, they shouldn’t test those elements,” Shehu added.
