Chibok girls: We didn’t ban protests, but… Police

The Force Headquarters of the Nigeria police said yesterday in Abuja that it has not banned peaceful assemblies or protest in any part of the country. Rather, the police said they only issued an advisory notice urging the public to apply caution while embarking on peaceful protests especially in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and its environs.
The FCT Commissioner of Police (CP), Mbu Joseph Mbu, had on Monday announced immediate ban on protests in Abuja over the kidnapping of over 200 schoolgirls of Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State. They were abducted by Boko Haram on April 14. The students are yet to regain their freedom.
But in a swift reaction, the Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, said: “The police High Command wishes to inform the general public that the force has not issued any order banning peaceful assemblies/protests anywhere in Nigeria”.
At a media briefing held at the Force Headquarters yesterday, Mba, while stating the position of the police on peaceful rallies which he said the High Command regards as the constitutional and democratic rights of every Nigerian, however, stressed the need for organizers of such protests  to seek proper advice and guidance from the police to avoid any unpleasant circumstances.
Mba said the explanation was necessary because of the security challenges in the country and a recent  intelligence report of a likely infiltration and hijack of otherwise innocuous and peaceful protests by some criminals having links with insurgents.
While noting that the business of security was a collective responsibility of every Nigerian, Mba said, “citizens are strongly advised to reconsider their positions on the issues of rallies and protests in the FCT until the existing threats are appropriately neutralized and removed by security agencies.”