Curfew in Ekiti, Abia, Plateau, Osun, Ondo over #EndSARS protest
The governments of Ekiti, Abia Plateau, Osun and Ondo have declared 24-hour curfew in the states due to the growing concern on how the EndSARS protests, which started peacefully, have been hijacked by hoodlums.
In Ekiti, a release by the Secretary to the State Government, Mr. Biodun Oyebanji, said in the past 48 hours, there have been incidents of gang-rape, robberies, physical assaults on innocent people, looting and burning of a police station in the state.
He noted that government was concerned that if this state of affairs was allowed to continue unchecked, it would lead to a breakdown of law and order thereby threatening the wellbeing of the people of the state.
Daily Trust reports that security operatives including soldiers and policemen have been stationed on some major roads in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital, to maintain law and order in the state.
This is even as the state’s Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Dr. Kofoworola Aderiye, ordered the closure of all private and public schools for the rest of the week in the state.
In Abia State, Governor Okezie Ikpeazu, said the dusk to dawn curfew in the state followed Monday night’s attack on police officers on official duty around Azikiwe Road by Asa in Aba, by yet to be identified hoodlums numbering over 30, who killed one of the officers and also carted away their arms and ammunition.
Furthermore, Ikpeazu has approved a cash reward of N5 million for anyone who provided information leading to the arrest of the hoodlums and armed cultists.
He also approved N1 million for each authentic video evidence on brutality and extrajudicial killings by security agents in the state submitted to the judicial panel of inquiry to be inaugurated to investigate the incidents.
In Plateau State, Governor Simon Bako Lalong, imposed a 24-hours curfew in Jos North and Jos South Local Government Areas of the state.
The governor said the decision followed the realisation that the EndSARS protest took a new turn on Tuesday when the protests led to the destruction of properties, cars and looting of business premises along the Ahmadu Bello way as well as the burning of a place of worship along Gyero Road in Bukuru.
Mr. Biggs and Jaiz Bank were among the structures damaged during the unrest that erupted in Jos following the blockade of Ahmadu Bello Way, Jos, by protesters of the EndSARS movement in the state.
In Osun, the government in a statement by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prince Wole Oyebamiji, has declared curfew in all parts of the state. He said the events of the last 48 hours have shown clearly that the protests have been hijacked.
Ondo State Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, in a state broadcast, yesterday, also imposed a 24-hour curfew on the state with effect from 12 midnight Tuesday till further notice.