The Federal Capital Territory Police Command has denied attacking the October 1 protestors in Abuja.
SP Josephine Adeh, the Police Public Relations Officer of the FCT Police Command, made this statement on Tuesday in Abuja.
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Adeh stated that the operatives simply took aggressive steps to avoid looting and that it was imperative to confront the accusation after allegations circulated that cops attacked protestors at Utako Market in Abuja earlier Tuesday during the rally.
She urged the populace to disregard such misleading and mischievous information, stressing that the command was committed to ensuring the safety of the populace in the exercise of their civil rights.
Earlier reports said police officers on Tuesday fired teargas at protesters during the #FearlessInOctober protest over bad governance in Abuja.
“The command wishes to categorically debunk the narrative, tagging it completely false and misleading.
“Acting on intelligence, the operatives only took measures to forestall miscreants who were taking advantage of the protest to loot shops in the market and as a result, extended focus to them.
“As a responsible agency, we could not stand by and allow traders to be robbed of their hard-earned money and belongings without intervening,” the statement added.