Charly Boy
Chux Ohai
Popular entertainer and activist,
Charles Oputa, a.k.a Charly Boy, has said that he was brutalised during
the protest organised on Tuesday at the Unity Fountain in Abuja by a
coalition of civil society organisations acting under the aegis of
‘Concerned Nigerians’.
Oputa, in a telephone interview with our
correspondent, said that one of the anti-riot policemen, who attacked
the protesters with tear-gas and water cannons, hit him in the eye with
the butt of his rifle.
He said, “We were not even up to 10
people that set out for the Unity Fountain. When we got there, we met
close to 200 policemen. Initially they tried to stop us from going
further. But we explained to them that ours would be a peaceful
demonstration. I gave them the assurance that we were not going to
anywhere else and the protest would not be hijacked by hoodlums.
“Before we knew it, they started with
the water cannon. Then they tear-gassed us and set their dogs against
us. Worried, I went to one of the policemen who was standing near me and
asked him why they resorted to such action. Instead of responding to
me, he suddenly raised the butt of his gun and hit me in the eye.”
Oputa said he was immediately rushed to a
clinic for treatment. But he expressed concern over the health of
another victim, a TV journalist, said to be severely beaten up by the
police.
“I saw them beating up that man and smashing his camera. I hope they have not killed him,” he said.
However, the self-styled ‘Area Father’
vowed to continue with the protest, in spite of the attack. “We are
coming out tomorrow. It is better they kill me now because I will never
stop speaking for the masses of this country,” he said.
Source: Punch
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