Mu’Sodiq
Adekunle-The Joint Action Front has lamented that Police brutalised and
arrested no fewer than 100 comprising of students, activists and journalists
during a protest against the ongoing strike embarked upon by the polytechnic
and colleges of education lecturers. Daily Times reports
It said the
protest had thousands of students from Yaba College of Technology; Federal
Polytechnics’ students from Ede, Ilaro, Offa, and Federal Colleges of Education
from Akoka-Lagos and other states across the country when the incident happened
on Wednesday.
It said the
protest was to lobby the government to implement agreements reached with ASUP
and COEASU in order to ensure the return to academic normalcy for the Polytechnics
and Colleges of Education students.
The
statement read: "JAF whose members were part of the MASS PROTEST organized
today May 28 by the Concerned Students against Education Commercialisation
(COSATEC) wishes to strongly condemn the trigger happy armed police REPRESSION
of the peaceful protest, culminating in the arrest and brutality of over 100
students, activists, and journalists.
"The
peaceful procession of students and activists under the leadership of the
National Coordinator and National Secretary of COSATEC. The peaceful protest
started with a procession from the gate of YABATECH at about 10am and marched
peacefully through the Murtala Mohammed Way Ebute Metta, enroute to erect
Barricade at the entrance of the Third Mainland Bridge by Adekunle junction.
"It was
at this point that the Police descended heavily on the peaceful protest with
sporadic shooting of teargas, live ammunition and beating of harmless students,
activists and journalists with gun butts. Some of the buses that carried
students during the procession were not spared as their windscreen were
shattered. Even the symbolic Coffin and Cow inscribed with “Death to Education
in Nigeria” were targets of police destruction.
"Worst
of all was the brutalization of Mr. Segun Akinpelu, a renowned reporter with
the Sahara Reporters whose was mercilessly brutalized and his camera and other
recording gadgets were completely destroyed into pieces. To cap it all, over
100 students, journalists and activists that included Comrade Akanni Iromini of
Awake Nigeria and Mr. Akinpelu were arrested and bundled into a Black Maria.
"While
in the Black Maria, the following phone conversations were exchanged with the
Secretary of JAF by Comrade Akanni and Mr. Segun:
From Akanni:
'Police supplied cold water sachets to cool down the heat in the Black Maria
stationed at the entrance of Third Mainland Bridge at Adekunle .”
From Segun:
'I have been bruised and arrested along with the protesting students by
policemen. My camera broken and all my gadgets taken away. We are still in
Black Maria at the Adekunle junction."
JAF commended the resistance by the students
and other civil society activists in the protests, which forced the Police
authority to eventually free the arrested and detained students and activists
from the suffocating Black Maria, after 3 hours, and were driven to the back
street of YABATECH to disembark at about 3.30pm
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