Amnesty International has called for the immediate and unconditional release of Umar Danjani, a #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria protester, who was arrested in Jigawa State.
Danjani was reportedly detained by the Nigerian Police Force on Thursday while participating in a protest alongside thousands of Nigerians exercising their constitutional rights.
Following his arrest, Danjani was arraigned in court on Friday, where an order was secured to remand him at Birnin Kudi prison.
Amnesty International made the calls in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter, condemning the arrest.
It said, “Subjecting critical voices to intimidation and arbitrary arrests for speaking out is unlawful.”
Confirming the arrest of Danjani, Abiyos Roni alleged he was remanded in prison for two weeks for protesting against bad governance.
The arrest occurred amid a wave of nationwide protests that swept across major cities and the Federal Capital Territory.
The demonstrations, which began on Thursday, saw thousands of Nigerians expressing their dissatisfaction with the country’s worsening economic conditions, soaring inflation, poor governance and insecurity.
However, the protests were marred by incidents of police brutality.
Reports emerged of journalists and media professionals facing arrest, physical assault, harassment, and obstruction while covering the events.
In one instance, Daily Independent photojournalist Jide Oyekunle was unlawfully detained and had his phone confiscated by police officers in Abuja.
Arogidigba Global Journal noted that at least 12 journalists and media professionals suffered from police brutality or attacks by government-sponsored hoodlums on the first day of the protests.
The nationwide demonstrations, scheduled to last ten days, aim to voice citizens’ grievances against the hardships exacerbated by President Bola Tinubu’s administration.