Lekki tollgate: Take note, we can use force on protesters, defence minister
- EndSARS2 protesters have been warned that security agents will use minimum force on them if they resort to vandalisation of properties
- The warning came from the minister of defence, Bashir Salihi Magashi
- Magashi said the police officials will not fold their hands and witness another breakdown of law and order in the country
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Bashir Salihi Magashi, the minister of defence on Saturday, February 13, sent a strong warning to Lekki Tollgate protesters.
Magashi said security personnel will not sit back and observe violence and the vandalisation of both public and private properties by hoodlums who perpetrate crimes in the guise of EndSARS2 protesters, The Nation reports.
The minister made it clear that officers if this becomes the case, will have to use minimum force to arrest the situation in a bid to prevent chaos and a breakdown of law and order.
However, Magashi explained that by mentioning force, he is not in any way calling for ruthlessness from police operatives to start killing fellow citizens.
Source: Facebook
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He said:
“Whoever is involved in this #EndSARS issue, the military and the government will not allow it to happen. We will be as good as any other citizen to protect this country.
“We are not going to be harsh on anybody. We will maintain the law and peace to the best of our ability. We can use force when it is required. When we say ‘use force,’ we don’t mean go and start killing people.
“We can use minimum force in commiserating with what is seen on the ground. And that is where some people are getting it wrong.
“We can not sit down and then watch you shoot somebody and we allow you to go free because somebody thinks you are one who can kill and go away.
Meanwhile, amid the rising tension generated by the arrest of #OccupyLekkiTollGate protesters on Saturday, February 13, there was a brief moment of comic relief when the police's Black Maria broke down.
The Black Maria, a police van mainly used to transport prisoners, was the one the police kept the arrested protesters.
Onyirioha Nnamdi is a graduate of Literature and English Language at the University of Lagos. He is a Politics/Current Affairs Editor who writes on news and political topics for Legit.ng. He brings into his reporting a wealth of experience in creative and analytical writing. Nnamdi has a major interest in local and global politics.
Source: Legit.ng
