13th April, 2016
Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt
The Occupy Nigeria Season 2 has cancelled the planned protest against President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria that was scheduled to hold in Port Harcourt on Thursday April 14, 2016.
The protest which was to be held jointly with various civil society organizations, social media activists, including student unions among others was put on hold in solidarity for Peter Ofurum who was killed during a peaceful protest by University of Port Harcourt student.
In a press statement signed by Livingston Weche, the facilitator he said the planned protest was put off following various interventions by stakeholders.
“This is due to the plea not to further plunge our people into further hardship from the current biting situation which may trail the protest. Most importantly, for the records, a major reason why this protest is been put off is to honour late Peter Ofurum, first class student of UNIPORT who was part of the Occupy Nigeria planned protest but was killed by the Nigerian police Force just three days to the protest.”
The group said the aim of the protest remains on four fronts among which are demands that the Federal government immediately resolves the perennial fuel crisis, increased electricity tariff without improved services, incessant fraudulent bank charges and the general economic hardship facing Nigerians currently etc.
Occupy Nigeria Group also said Ofurum’s death will not be in vain. The group said there were reports not withstanding from its intelligence unit of plots to infiltrate the protesters with armed miscreants so as to criminalize the protesters and occasion a stage-managed gun battle with deployed troops leading to the killing of protesters, our resolve remains unchanging as we explore other channels of this same advocacy.
It said therefore, that in solidarity with the students of the University of Port Harcourt and National Association of Nigerian students NANS, who were to join in this street protest, condemn the brutal killing of Peter Ofurum who was until his death, the Faculty President of Management Science Students, shot to death by a Police officer during a peaceful students protest on Monday. The group said the police authorities are ridiculously denying ever killing anybody.
On the killing of Opurum, the group said “we hold jointly the Management of UNIPORT and the Nigerian Police responsible for this avoidable crisis and the death of Peter Ofurum as we take the following positions that the Muhammadu Buhari led Federal government should wake up immediately to resolve this fuel, power and economic problems that have crippled Nigeria and strangulated the socioeconomic wellbeing of its citizens thus bringing the country’s life to a terminus, in line with his campaign promises because Nigerians have run out of patience, an independent Panel of Enquiry should be immediately set up by the Federal government to investigate the remote and immediate cause of this avoidable UNIPORT crisis as well as fish out the police officer that killed Peter Ofurum and bring him to justice so as to cure this dangerous and systemic lies by the Nigerian police authorities who are working hard to turn their crime into a trophy ostensibly.”
The group also accused the Management of UNIPORT led by Professor Ndowa Lale in exhibiting gross institutional insensitivity in this incident, while it is yet to come out of the Aluu four crisis, having blatantly turned down appeals from stakeholders who ab initio intervened to avert this situation, should be immediately suspended from office so to face a probe so it does not compromise or interfere with the expected investigation including its current moves to induce a section of the leadership of the National Association of Nigerian students.
It also condemn the continued incessant arrests and intimidation of student Union leaders in UNIPORT by the Nigerian Police as a result of this incident. The Inspector General of Police and the Rivers state Commissioner of Police are hereby charged to call their men to order to avoid any further unwanted crisis on this issue.
