NIGERIA. Thousands of people looted a government food warehouse in central Nigeria on Saturday. People raided a huge warehouse in Jos that was storing supplies for distribution during lockdowns imposed to control the pandemic.
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Several videos were posted on social media showed thousands of people looting a warehouse. In one of the videos, people were seen carrying away sacks of cereals, rice and bags of pasta. The looters also stripped away the roof of the building.
Nigerian state governors have slapped round-the-clock curfews on a string of states as residents have pillaged stocks that were meant for distribution. Meanwhile, the Nigerian Army is about to begin a two-month nationwide operation.
Peaceful demonstrations against police brutality erupted in Nigeria on October 8. However, the protestors are now fending off attacks from gangs suspected to be backed by the police, warnings from the Nigerian military, and a government order to stop the protests.
Due to ongoing violence in Nigeria, many police stations had been burnt. The officials have accused “hoodlums” of taking advantage of the mayhem. In a statement, Amnesty International has said that at least 12 protestors were gunned down by the police in Lagos on Tuesday. A total of 56 people have died since the demonstrations began.
Meanwhile, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has called for an end to the protests. He has also warned the demonstrators not to “undermine national security”. However, Buhari has not directly addressed the shooting of protestors in Lagos yet.
Nigeria is suffering from deep social and economic grievances. Around half of the estimated 200 million populations are living in extreme poverty.
The protests against police brutality have received backing from major celebrities, including Beyonce, Rihanna, Cardi B and heavyweight boxer Anthony Joshua.
