Mixed reactions trail curfew in Kaduna

Posted by admin Kaduna, Oil Politics, State News Thursday, January 12th, 2012

Residents of Kaduna metropolis have received the 24-hour curfew imposed by the state government with mixed reactions.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that the state government announced the imposition of the curfew on Tuesday, after its security council meeting which reviewed the ongoing petrol price hike protest and the attendant nationwide strike called by the organised labour.

Alarmed by the dimension the protest was taking, the state government on Tuesday evening, slammed the curfew to prevent the strike from being hijacked by hoodlums.

Mr Sa’idu Adamu, the Commissioner for Information, told NAN that the curfew was introduced following security reports that suspected hoodlums had started attacking innocent citizens in parts of the state.

But reacting to the restriction of movement order, the state NLC Chairman, Malam Adamu Ango, described it as a big surprise.

“We (organisers) are on top of the situation and had even called off the street protest from Wednesday, January 11 by the afternoon of Tuesday, Jan. 10 to prevent any crisis.

“Labour and the organised civil society are jointly monitoring the event closely with security agencies to ensure a peaceful and orderly conduct by the protesters.

“But we were jolted by the news and regard the move as a big surprise designed to weaken our action,” said the labour leader.

On his part, Mr Tajudeen Oladoja, the state Coordinator of “Occupy Nigeria”, a civil society organisation, expressed shock that the government still went ahead to impose the curfew after the protest had been suspended.

He said the imposition could compound the problem at hand.

“As organisers of the nationwide protest, we pledged and ensured irate persons did not hijack the process,” Oladoja said, lauding the protesters for burying their ethno-religious and political differences to express their rejection of the petrol price hike and security challenges.

A restaurant operator, Mrs Christy David, said the curfew might appear to be good, the residents would lack food as some of her customers were already crying of hunger.

Mr Emmanuel Anche, a resident of Kaduna South Local Government Area, applauded the curfew only “if the intention is to prevent security breaches’.’

-Tribunewp_posts