During yesterday's #FreeNnamadiKanuNow rally in sections of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, eight persons were arrested, including a lawyer named Aloy Ejimakor and a relative of Nnamdi Kanu named Fineboy Kanu.  

The demonstrators will be arraigned in court, according to police spokesperson Benjamin Hundeyin, who confirmed their arrest.  Additionally, Hundeyin denied rumors that demonstrators were shot with live ammunition.  

He claimed that in accordance with Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), the police used tear gas to scatter demonstrators who tried to enter the areas from which they were barred by a court order.

“I can state categorically, authoritatively, that no live ammunition was fired. It’s very easy for people unfamiliar with the sounds to mistake the firing of tear gas for live ammunition.” 

 “They (those arrested) are currently at the state CID. Once we conclude investigations, they will be prosecuted,” he added.

He said that the Federal High Court had granted the police an order preventing demonstrators from entering specific areas of the FCT and important national institutions.  

He said that intelligence assessments indicating that the protest would turn violent were the reason for the action against the demonstrators.

“There was a group that protested along this road some years back, and it was anarchy. We saw ambulances burnt down. We cannot allow that to happen again,”  Hundeyin recalled. 

A widespread security lockdown surrounding the Presidential Villa and other areas of Abuja was triggered by protests seeking Kanu's release, which resulted in traffic jams on numerous highways.  

Omoyele Sowore, the organizer of the #RevolutionNow movement, led the protest, which resulted in increased security throughout the FCT.  

In order to prevent traffic and leave thousands of commuters stuck, combined teams of military, police officers, and Department of State Services (DSS) agents had erected barricades on key entry points leading into the Central Business District (CBD) by daybreak.

Source