Over N9bn was disbursed to cause chaos during #EndBadGovernance protests – Police
More than N9 billion was disbursed to cause chaos in the country during the #EndBadGovernance protests, says the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).
Force Police Public Relations, ACP Muyiwa Adejobi, disclosed this on Wednesday at the Civil Space Guard conference in Abuja, organized by the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ).in collaboration with the Kingdom of Netherlands.
Adejobi said prior to the #EndBadGovernace protest, the police announced that the demonstration will be hijacked by foreign mercenaries to cause violence in the country.
The force spokesperson said due to the trust deficit in the country, many Nigerians did not believe what the police had said.
Adejobi said the police “intercepted” conversation about how some persons were “planted” to cause violence during the August nationwide protests.
He narrated how the police received intelligence and traced Andrew Wynne, a Briton, to the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) headquarters in Abuja.
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“People were trying to protest and express their feelings to the government. Some people were trying to capitalise on that to get money. They actually got money — we are talking about N9 billion,” he said.
“I’m sure you are not aware that somebody got money. Because of that protest alone, people realised N9 billion and they actually disbursed the money to cause chaos in Nigeria.”
The force spokesperson added that the police is training 10,000 recruits on media literacy, civic engagement and behavioural change.
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WSCIJ Executive Director, Motunrayo Alaka, expressed concern over the data, highlighting its implications for democratic integrity. “Shockingly, 90% of attacks on journalists occur while they’re executing their responsibilities. This statistic means that nine out of ten times, journalists are subjected to harassment simply for doing their jobs,”
Alaka stressed the importance of creating a safe environment for journalists, which she described as essential for a thriving democracy.
Earlier, some panellists explained the vital roles of investigative journalism in enhancing democracy and protecting civic space.
The panellists discussed the persistent struggles journalists endure in Nigeria, 25 years after the return to democracy.
SolaceBase reports that the workshop was tagged ‘AI, Free Press & Civil Space: Tools, Challenges and Future of Investigative Reporting’.
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