The Rivers State Police on Tuesday reportedly shot sporadically at the Secretariat of Port Harcourt City Council to scare away scores of youths who stormed the secretariat to protest.
The loud gunshots caused pandemonium along the stretch of the council Secretariat adjacent to the state police command headquarters and Rivers State House of Assembly as residents and passersby scampered for safety.
The youths were at the secretariat to carry out a peaceful demonstration against the immediate past local government council chairmen whom they claimed had refused to vacate office after the expiration of their tenure.
A spokesperson of the group in an interview with Daily Trust said they were not at the secretariate to make trouble, but the police started shooting at them immediately after they sighted them.
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He said, “We are Ijaw youths; we are here on a peaceful demonstration against those whose tenure have expired but said they will not vacate their office. We are not here to make trouble but we were on a peaceful demonstration but the police started shooting at us.”
Also speaking, the leader of Port Harcourt City youths, Allwell Ichemanti, who was also at the secretariat for the demonstration, said one of the youths was shot by the police.
Ichemanti accused the immediate past Chairman of the Council of inviting the police to attack them.
Confirming the development, the state Commissioner of Police, Olatunji Disu, said men of the command had been deployed in various councils to maintain peace.
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