Nigeria police fired tear gas on Thursday to break up several hundred protesters rallying against the cost of living in the northern city of Kano and in the capital Abuja, newsmen at the scene said.
Africa’s most populous country is battling high inflation and a sharply devalued naira after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ended a costly fuel subsidy and liberalised the currency a year ago to improve the economy.
In Kano, the country’s second largest city, protesters tried to light bonfires outside the state governor’s office and police responded with tear gas, forcing most of the demonstrators back, newsmen report.
According to report, security forces later also fired tear gas to disperse crowds in Mararaba on the outskirts of the capital and in the centre.
Under the tag #EndbadGovernanceinNigeria, the protest movement won support with an online campaign, but officials had warned against attempts to copy recent violent demonstrations in Kenya, where the government was forced to abandon new taxes.
Punch/ Oluwabusayo Oyinloye
