Gunshots were heard at the Port Harcourt City Council Secretariat on Tuesday as police pushed back a large group of youths protesting against Local Government Council Chairmen.
The protesters said they were at the secretariat to demonstrate against the immediate past local government council chairmen whom they claimed had refused to vacate office after the expiration of their tenure.
One of their representatives spoke:
“We are Ijaw youths; we are here on a peaceful demonstration against those whose tenure have expired but said they will not vacate their office. We are not here to make trouble but we were on a peaceful demonstration but the police started shooting at us.”
A youth leader known as Allwell Ichemanti, said one of the youths was shot by the police.
He accused the immediate past Chairman of the Council of using the police to hound them.
Commuters and passers were thrown into pandemonium at the stretch of the council Secretariat adjacent to both the state police command headquarters and Rivers State House of Assembly as residents and passersby scampered for safety.
The State Police Command Public Relation Officer, SP Grace Iringe Koko is yet to address the public on the matter, however, the Commissioner of Police, Olatunji Disu, had earlier said men of the command had been deployed in various councils to maintain orderliness.