Why we invaded anti-Tinubu rally | Nairalaw

Chike Oti, spokesperson of the Lagos command of the Nigeria
Police Force, says its operatives barricaded a political rally in
Lagos on Thursday to prevent hoodlums from hijacking the
programme.

Oti said the action by the police had no political undertone as
the officers only responded to a distress call that hoodlums were
coming to disrupt the event.

Heavily armed policemen had invaded the venue at Airport Hotel,
Ikeja around 11am on Thursday where the activists, under the Orange
Movement, had slated a rally ahead of the March 9 governorship
election.

“What we did was to respond to security threats distress call at
the venue of the programme,” Oti said.

“We got credible information that hoodlums were planning to
hijack the programme to unleash violence on those expected to
attend.

“We cannot sit back to allow any breach of security, we
intervened to prevent criminals from gaining access so that the
programme could hold peacefully.”

The group had converged on Oramiyan Hall in the hotel to
strategise on how to stop Bola Tinubu, a national leader of the All
Progressives Congress (APC), from having his way in the
election.

Babajide Sanwo-Olu, candidate of the APC in the election, has
the support of Tinubu.

The Orange Movement had adopted “O to Ge”, meaning “Enough is
Enough”, a crusade which was used to uproot the political structure
of Senate President Bukola Saraki in Kwara state.