By Valentine Amanze, Online Editor
Newspaper vendors on Saturday November 21, 2020, in Abuja abandoned other businesses to protest the killing of one of their colleagues, Ifeanyi Okereke Elechi.
As early as 8:00am, the vendors matched the streets of Abuja carrying placards, which most of them read: “Justice for Elechi,” “Vendors’ lives matter.”
Elechi was killed by a bullet from a security aide to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, on Thursday evening.
The Speaker confirmed the incident in a statement released in the early hours of Friday.
According to him, Elechi was shot by the stray bullet, which was only intended to disperse a crowd, while he was exchanging pleasantries with the newspaper vendors on his way out of the National Assembly.
“A horrible incident has taken place. This evening as I left the National Assembly, I stopped, as usual, to exchange pleasantries with the newspaper vendors at the corner,” he explained.
“Many of them have known me since I first moved to Abuja and it was a friendly exchange. Unfortunately, after the convoy set out in continuation of movement, unidentified men obstructed the convoy, which got the attention of security men in the convoy who shot into the air to disperse them.”
The lawmaker narrated that some hours after they got to their destination, he was informed that the victim, identified as Ifeanyi had been hit by a stray bullet.
He said this was “contrary to an earlier report by men in the convoy that they applied their security discretion to shoot in the air.
“In the meantime; the officer who fired the fatal shot has been suspended from the convoy pending the conclusion of the investigation.”
While sending his condolences to the family of the deceased, the Speaker expressed distraught about the incident.
