Human rights lawyer and counsel to the detained IPOB leader, Barrister Aloy Ejimakor, has recounted his personal experience as security operatives fired teargas at peaceful protesters gathered in Abuja to demand the release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
Speaking from the protest ground in front of the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Ejimakor said he arrived early on Monday morning to join hundreds of Nigerians who had defied earlier police warnings to assemble peacefully.
“By 6:30 a.m., the crowd was already building — clerics, civil rights activists, and ordinary citizens, all calling for justice. No one shouted, no one was violent. We simply stood together, united by one message: Free Nnamdi Kanu,” he said.
According to Ejimakor, the situation suddenly turned tense when police operatives fired teargas without provocation, scattering the crowd.
“The police just exploded teargas. My eyes and throat hurt. People were running in all directions, coughing and crying. It was painful to witness such hostility toward peaceful citizens,” he recounted.
Despite the action of the security agencies, Ejimakor maintained that the protest would continue, insisting that Nigerians have a constitutional right to peaceful assembly.
Teargas cannot stop the truth. We are determined to keep standing until our leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, regains his freedom. We are waiting for our comrade, Omoyele Sowore, to join us,” he said.
Security operatives from both the Nigeria Police Force and the Department of State Security (DSS) were earlier placed on red alert to prevent the protesters from marching to Aso Rock Villa.As of the time of filing this report, Ejimakor confirmed that Abuja remained on edge, but protesters were still regrouping in various spots across the city, chanting solidarity songs and demanding justice.