#EndBadGovernance: Defiant Protesters Return to Abuja Streets on Day 2

Protesters returned to the streets of Abuja on Friday, determined to demand an end to insecurity and economic hardship in Nigeria. The crowd was notably smaller than the hundreds who gathered on Thursday, expressing their grievances about the rising cost of living.

Thursday’s initially peaceful protest turned violent after police deployed tear gas on the demonstrators. Despite this, many protesters, undeterred by the crackdown, returned to continue their demonstrations on Friday.

A significant number of the protesters were young people, voicing their frustration over the country’s dire economic conditions. They have vowed to persist with their “days of rage” for ten days.

Suwaiba Abdullahi, one of the protesters at the MKO Abiola Stadium, expressed her resolve, stating she is “willing to sacrifice her life for the protests until the authorities listen to their pleas.” Abdullahi, a nursing mother whose husband was recently killed in northern Nigeria, recounted her arrest on Thursday but emphasized her determination to continue protesting.

“I am ready to die,” Abdullahi declared, urging the president to address the pervasive hunger and insecurity plaguing the nation.

On Thursday, Nigerians marched through several cities chanting “we are hungry.” In response, five northern states—Kano, Jigawa, Katsina, Borno, and Yobe—imposed a 24-hour curfew after protests escalated into violence.

Friday saw a heavy police and military presence around the MKO Abiola Stadium in Abuja, with officers guarding key routes to the airport and city center.

In Gwagwalada, another group of protesters briefly blocked the Lokoja-Abuja expressway before being dispersed by security forces using tear gas. The road was eventually reopened to traffic, although some vehicles were damaged during the unrest.

Protesters’ demands include reversing the recent fuel price hike, restoring affordable electricity tariffs, reducing import duties, reversing the hike in tertiary education fees, and ensuring full transparency and accountability in governance. They also call for the public disclosure and reduction of public officials’ salaries and allowances and the establishment of an emergency fund to support small and medium-sized enterprises.