Protesters on Thursday defied a court order restraining them from holding demonstrations against the government.
Justice Sylvanus Oriji of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja had restricted the August 1 protest to the MKO Abiola Stadium in the nation’s capital.
This order was issued in response to an ex-parte application brought by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
Despite this, demonstrators under the ‘Take It Back Movement’ marched towards Eagle Square, carrying placards with messages such as “Hunger is enough” and “End bad governance in Nigeria.”
Initially, they had gathered at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium.
An FCT resident, Emmanuel Larry, stated that hunger had driven him to join the protest. He emphasized that the government must listen to their demands, reaffirming that the demonstrations would continue as planned from August 1 to August 10, despite speculation to the contrary.
“Today is the hunger day, we all promise you that we are going to be the streets of Abuja. Hunger has brought me out, I don’t have money to buy fuel,” he said.
“I don’t have money to buy whatever, there is total bad governance. The government has used propaganda and fake news to tell you that the protests have been cancelled.
“The protests have not been cancelled, we are on the street. It is for 10 days. If our demands are not being met, we will remain on the streets. Hunger, insecurity, and poor housing have brought me out. A lot of things are going on in this country.”