Kayode Egbetokun, the Inspector General of Police, has invited Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, a human rights lawyer, to a meeting in Abuja.
Adegboruwa had written to the police chief requesting police protection for demonstrators.
In his response letter dated 29th July 2024, the IGP instructed senior police officers to comply with the senior lawyer’s request.
Egbetokun’s response was signed by his Principal Staff Officer, Commissioner of Police Johnson Adenola.
The IGP also requested a meeting with Adegboruwa in Abuja on Tuesday, 30th July 2024, “to deliberate further” on his request.
“I am to inform you that the Inspector General of Police has directed the Deputy Inspectors-General of Police (Operations and Intelligence), the Assistant Inspectors-General of Police in charge of Zonal Police Headquarters, and the Commissioners of Police in charge of State Commands across the country to attend to your request.
“I am also to inform you that the Inspector General of Police wishes to have a meeting with you at the Nigeria Police Force Headquarters, Abuja, on Tuesday, 30th July 2024 to deliberate further on your request,” said Commissioner Adenola.
The police, military, and the Department of State Services had warned against Kenya-style protests. Politicians, who speculated that the planned rally might resemble the EndSARS demonstration of October 2020, continue to appeal to youths to cancel the planned rallies, but the young people remain steadfast, insisting that the protest will go ahead.
The protest against economic hardship, gaining traction on social media, has been scheduled to take place across all states of the Federation as well as in the nation’s capital in August.
Prices of food and basic commodities have skyrocketed in recent months, as Nigerians face one of the country’s worst inflation rates and economic crises, sparked by the government’s twin policies of petrol subsidy removal and the unification of forex windows.