By Bashir Bello

Ahead of the planned October 1 nationwide protest, a coalition of Nigerian movements, under the aegis of the Nigeria Patriotic Front Movement (NPFM), Northern chapter, has alleged the arrest of five of its leaders in Kano State.

In a statement signed by Comrade Al-Amin on behalf of the Secretariat, the coalition identified those arrested as Comrade Abdulmajid Daudu, Barrister Yusha’u Sani Yankuzo, Barrister Amina Bello, Comrade Sani NaRogo, Comrade Anas, and Comrade Abdullahi.

The coalition claimed that these comrades from the Kano NPFM chapter were taken by the police to Abuja under the instructions of the National Security Adviser (NSA).

“Comrade Abdulmajid Yakubu Daudu left his office this afternoon (Monday) at around 2:30 p.m. to attend a meeting with the Kano State Commissioner of Police at the Bompai Headquarters. He was accompanied by four other NPFM members. As of 7:42 p.m., Comrade Abdulmajid and his colleagues had not returned, and their whereabouts remain unknown.

“All efforts to reach them have proved abortive. “We urge comrades across the country to raise the alarm until Comrade Abdulmajid and his colleagues safely return home.

“No one in their right mind can take the sudden disappearance of Comrade Abdulmajid and his NPFM colleagues lightly. The growing state of political repression in the country makes it more urgent for the Kano State Commissioner of Police to produce Comrade Abdulmajid and his colleagues,” the statement read.

Comrade Abdulmajid and his colleagues had over the weekend addressed a press conference in Kano, announcing the commencement of a nationwide National Survival Day protest scheduled for October 1, 2024. The central concerns of the protest include the cost-of-living crisis and endemic bad governance in the country.

Among the demands raised by Comrade Abdulmajid are the following: addressing the overpriced fuel pump rate, food inflation, high cost of governance, grand corruption, persistent insecurity, and the re-nationalization of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC) and electricity distribution companies (DISCOs), among others.