The command’s spokesperson, Josephine Adeh, in a statement on Friday, July 26, said the deployment of the officers is “aimed at ensuring public safety, protection of protesters, and preventing protests from being hijacked by non-state actors”.

According to her, “The FCT Police Command, in anticipation of the planned nationwide protest by some human rights activists and Nigerian youths to publicly express their displeasure over hunger and hardship, has proactively deployed material and human resources at the command’s disposal across the nation’s capital.

The proactive deployment, which is aimed at ensuring public safety, protection of protesters, and preventing protests from being hijacked by non-state actors, is characterised by visibility policing, the deployment of explosive ordinance devices experts and personnel at various strategic locations, raids on identified black spots, uncompleted buildings/shanties, stop and search, vehicular and foot patrol and synergy with sister security agencies.”