The Nigerian Army on Monday stationed heavily armed troops and armoured vehicles at Filling Polo in Maiduguri, the planned venue for a protest over escalating insecurity and kidnappings in Borno State.
When our correspondent arrived at the scene around 9:35 a.m., the area was largely empty, while a few suspected protesters watched from afar amid concerns over a possible clash.
Speaking exclusively with our correspondent, the leader of the organising group, Samaila Kaigama, said the demonstration was postponed because of the strong military presence.
Kaigama, who also serves as President of the Borno South Youth Alliance, claimed the deployment was arranged by the state government to intimidate peaceful demonstrators.
“The state government sent military personnel there. That is what is happening now,” he said.
“We have reached out to our lawyer, who will redraft our letter of notification and present it to the government, the DSS, and every concerned authority. Once that is done, we can reschedule the protest.”
He also alleged that the security deployment discouraged residents, including some who reportedly came from Ngoshe, from joining the protest.
“They sent the military to stop people who travelled all the way from Ngoshe to protest over their children and wives in captivity, just to scare them away,” he added.
Kaigama confirmed that the protest had been suspended for now.
“Presently, we are cancelling the protest and doing exactly what they want. They want a letter; we will provide it. Once we do that, everyone I know in the human rights community will be on the ground,” he said.
“For now, they are free to use the military to oppress the people, but they cannot use the same military to rescue families stranded in terrorist dens.”
According to him, the protest was organised to highlight the deteriorating security situation and growing cases of abduction across parts of the state.
“This protest aims to create awareness and show the government that the people are seeking answers. About 416 people were abducted, including 12 in Biu,” he said.
“We have done everything possible to bridge the gap between the government and these people to explore possibilities of negotiation. We bought time and mediated discussions, but nothing has been fruitful. These families have continued crying and begging while lamenting that the government is more focused on primary elections.”
Attempts to get a reaction from the spokesperson for Operation Hadin Kai, Lt. Col. Sani Uba, were unsuccessful, as calls to his phone were not answered.
