Protesters set banks ablaze in Ogun

February 20, (THEWILL) – On Monday, irate youths protesting scarcity of naira notes and petrol attacked banks in the Sagamu area of Ogun State.

Speaking on the development, a youth leader in the town, Kayode Segun-Okeowo, described the attack as a “motivated destruction”, rather than a protest.

“This is not a protest. I’m a comrade and understand the ABC of protest. It is motivated to cause destruction. Those behind this must stop”, he said.

Spokesperson of the State Police Command, Abimbola Oyeyemi, who confirmed the incident, said Union Bank, First Bank and Keystone Bank branches were attacked by the protesters.

“We are in Sagamu now. The place is seriously burning. They attacked Union Bank and First Bank, as well as Keystone Bank. We are there right now”, he said.

Last Friday, protests erupted in the Mowe-Ibafo area of Ogun State, as the protesters took over the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway to protest the hardship occasioned by the lingering scarcity of the naira.

The State Police Command on Sunday alleged that some individuals were planning to cause a breach of public peace in the State by taking undue advantage of the scarcity of naira notes.

Oyeyemi said it had an intelligence report that those planning the mayhem may attack banks and other public and private infrastructures in the State.

He said the Commissioner of Police, Frank Mba, warned that the police would not fold its arms and allow criminals to hide under any guise “to unleash mayhem on residents, private and public property, and critical national infrastructure, including banks and offices of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).”