Protesters breached security and gained access to the government house in Kano, as demonstrations against economic hardship swept through Nigeria on Thursday.

Armed with cudgels and stripped to their singlets in some cases, the irate youths chanted anti-government slogans after erecting bonfires outside the precinct of the government building.

Security operatives unleashed water cannons and teargas canisters to keep the protesters at bay and prevent an arson.

Earlier, protesters had looted the newly built Nigeria Communication Commission (NCC) Industrial Park in Kano.

The protest had also turned violent in Yobe, Gombe, Kaduna and Borno. In Yobe, protesters reportedly torched government buses.

In Lagos and Abuja, police used teargas canisters on peaceful protesters.

In the south-east states, most youths did not bother coming out. Streets in Imo, Abia, Ebonyi and Anambra were deserted for hours on end.

Organisers have labelled the demonstrations as ’10 Days of Rage’ with the hashtag #EndBadGovernance.

Nigeria has been grappling with its worst cost of living crisis in decades since President Bola Tinubu ended the petrol subsidy regime and floated the naira in 2023.