How Kano Protest was Turned into Something Else
Miscreants overtook the #EndSARS protest in Kano State on Tuesday, as they engaged in looting spree in the Sabon Gari area of the city.
The hoodlums did not hide their intention right from the start, as they descended on warehouses, shops and supermarkets in the area, carting away food items, clothing and electronics in what they openly term as ‘ganima’.
Ganima in Hausa is translated to mean ‘spoils of war’.
But security agents who were deployed to the scenes that were most affected to put things under control, had to use force to quell the reckless looting, and about six people were said to have been killed in the process, according to eye witnesses.
it was not clear whether they were killed by the hoodlums or the security agents, as the state police command denied knowledge of any death.
Most of the reports about the incident in Kano on Tuesday were focused on happenings around Airport Road, Ibo Road, France Road and Burma Road, the lootings and robberies that occurred in the inner Sabon Gari roads went un-noticed.
Nigerian Sketch spoke with residents of the area who were thrown into conditions of fear as miscreants went house to house to rob people of their belongings. Some of the places were this was done included Warri, Abokuta, Sanya-Olu Sanusi and Gold-Coast roads.
Residents confirmed that their houses were attacked by hoodlums brandishing sharp objects and they were forced to surrender their household items, including phones, sound sets, plasma televisions and other things.
Those who run taverns and beer parlors were not spared were not spared as some of their shops were equally looted.
Nigerian Sketch’s investigations revealed that a lot of these hoodlums were young men who were residents of the area, assisted by others who came into the area from the main city areas of Fagge, Kano Municipal and Nassarawa.
The disquiet was brought under control after the early involvement of the security agents who claimed they have arrested about 60 of the miscreants.
Nigerian Sketch however gathered that the looters returned to operate in the night, breaking and stealing items from shops.
