President blames ‘thugs’
At least 51 civilians have been killed in Nigeria following days of peaceful protests over police abuses, President Muhammadu Buhari has said, blaming ‘‘ hooliganism’’ for the violence while asserting that security forces have used ‘‘extreme restraint’’.
Buhari’s comments are expected to further inflame tensions in Africa’s most populous country.
Amnesty International reported that soldiers had shot and killed at least 12 demonstrators on Wednesday. The deaths sparked international condemnation.
Buhari also said 11 policemen and seven soldiers had been killed by ‘‘ rioters’’, and ‘‘the mayhem has not stopped’’. He said another 37 civilians were injured in some of Nigeria’s worst turmoil in years, after the wellintentioned protests were ‘‘hijacked’’ by thugs.
Resentment lingered with the smell of charred tyres yesterday in Nigeria’s relatively calm streets. Soldiers remained in parts of the largest city, Lagos, as a 24-hour curfew remained in place.
Buhari’s comments, which were ‘‘devoid of sympathy’’, were worrying, said Okechukwu Nwanguma from the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre.
Shielding those behind the shootings would only lead to further abuses by the police and military, he said.
Citing the president’s comments, one influential group behind the protests, the Feminist Coalition, urged young people to stay at home. ‘‘We need to stay alive to pursue our dreams to build the future.’’
Others disagreed. Nigerian youth should instead ‘‘ go back and restrategise’’, said Seriki Muritala of the National Youth Parliament.
The demonstrations began early this month with calls for Nigeria’s government to shut down a police unit, the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, which had carried out torture and killings, according to Amnesty International.
Buhari’s government announced that it would disband the unit, but the protests persisted, with demonstrators calling for more widespread reforms of the police and an end to corruption.
After touring the battered city, Lagos state governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said he was ‘‘very traumatised’’.
‘‘Enough is enough,’’ he said. ‘‘We need to heal ourselves.’’ He said the curfew would begin easing this weekend, and a panel looking into the unrest would begin receiving petitions tomorrow.