Protesters storm the National Assembly of Nigeria to demand justice to the victims of a massacre
Featured image: Protesters demand justice to the victims of the massacre in the village of Tudun Biri, Kaduna, Nigeria. Source: guardian.ng
Protesters stormed the National Assembly premises in Abuja, Nigeria on the 6th of December to demand justice to the victims of a drone attack in Tudun Biri in Rigasa District of Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State. There was also protests in the town of Zaria. As we reported earlier, on Sunday the 3rd of December 90 villagers were massacred by the Nigerian Army, that bombed a crowd who had gathered to celebrate Maulud, the Islamic celebration of the birth of Prophet Muhammad. The Army has admitted that they committed the massacre, but as usual, they claimed that they were targeting terrorists and the villagers, among them children and elderly, were just collateral damage, and the massacre was just a tragic mistake. Similar ”mistakes” however occur regularly, as the Nigerian State wages war against the people and tries to repress the rebellion of the people especially in the northern part of the country, where multiple armed groups and movements operate.
The protesters blocked the entrance of the National Assembly for more than two hours. They demanded justice to the victims and demanded that the Minister of Defense, Abubakar Badaru and the National Assembly take action to stop the murdering of civilians. It was denounced that similar State terror happens daily in the northern parts of Nigeria, and that these operations of the army do nothing to protect the civilians from the supposed ”bandits and terrorists”.
The Nigerian State is trying to get away with the murder by offering empty condolences to the families, but still vows to continue the war against the people. The president Bola Tinubu sent a delegation to express the condolences of the State to the families of those murdered. Cynically the leader of the delegation, Minister of State of Kaduna for Defense, Bello Matawalle, said in a statement that the massacre is regrettable, but it is necessary to continue the ”war against terror”. Similar air strikes and ”mistakes” have already taken the lives of around 500 civilians in the last few years. Also according to the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Army, Senator Abdul’aziz Yar’Adua, the massacre of 90 people was an honest mistake, and turned the blame on the villagers, advising them to notify the State about large gatherings in the future.
The war against the people in Nigeria is waged with the weapons and lessons of US imperialism. At the time of the protests, a delegation from the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria visited the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Abbas Tajudeen, in Abuja. Abbas asked the US to support Nigeria to tackle ”insecurity and corruption”, requesting more support to the ”war against terror” and thanking the US for the support they already give. He warned that the failure of Nigeria would have dramatic consequences to the region, saying that currently the country is ”bedeviled by insecurity”.
