Protest breaks out in Nasarawa over Supreme Court verdict

Protest has broken out in Lafia, Nasarawa State capital, following the Supreme Court verdict which affirmed the election of Governor Abdullahi Sule in the March 18, 2023 election in the state.

The Lafia-Jos road has been completely blocked as the protesters lit bonfire to prevent travelers and other road users.

Motorists were said to have resorted to taking alternative routes out of Lafia.

An automobile mechanic, Mallam Dogo Audu, called for the deployment of more security operatives to restore calm and avert escalation.

Our correspondent also reports that shops owners and business centres have shut down.

Reacting to the protest, Sule asked the protesters to learn from the maturity displayed by members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) who heeded the advice not to protest when he lost at the tribunal.

He gave the advice on Friday while fielding questions from State House reporters after a meeting with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Sule, who paid a thank you visit to the president in company of his two predecessors in Nasarawa State, Senators Abdullahi Adams and Umar Tanko Al-Makura, said protests would not change the verdict of apex court.

He called on his opponents, without any grudge whatsoever, to come and join him in order to build the state.

When asked about his reaction to the protest, he said: “Nasarawa is a state where we had over 600,000 votes and we won with over 340,000 votes, so you will know that over 200,000 people did not vote for us. So, if out of these 200,000 people that did not vote for us and other set of 1,000 people are protesting somewhere, then you will know because it’s a day that not everybody will be happy.”