Popular social media influencer James Osita, widely known as “Flag Boy,” along with two other protesters arrested during Monday’s demonstration against the Cybercrime Act of 2024, have been released.
The other protesters released are Abosede Imanah and Richard Salifu.
The Take It Back movement coordinator in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Rex Elanu, confirmed the release to newsmen on Monday evening.
The demonstration took place near the Transcorp Hilton in Maitama after protesters were blocked from accessing Eagle Square and the Federal Secretariat.
Armed police officers, deployed by President Bola Tinubu’s administration, responded with force, firing tear gas canisters into the crowd.
The chaos forced several individuals, including former African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore, to seek safety inside the Transcorp Hilton.
“Flag Boy,” who was holding the Nigerian national flag, was reportedly singled out by police officers, assaulted, and dragged into a police van along with two other demonstrators.
Security forces had cordoned off major routes leading to the Presidential Villa and Eagle Square, severely restricting movement within the nation’s capital.
The Take It Back movement had condemned the arrests. Rex Elanu, a spokesperson for the group, described the police crackdown as an attack on peaceful protesters.
In an interview with newsmen, Elanu had criticised the security forces’ actions, particularly because they occurred on the same day as National Police Day celebrations.
“It’s shameful to even imagine that the police— who are supposed to act as responsible officers, especially on the day they claim to celebrate Police Day — were brutal enough to tear gas us from the front, left, right, and centre,” Elanu said. “Even a baby, who was merely a bystander with her mother, passed out.”
He added that the arrested protesters had committed no offence and were simply exercising their constitutional right to peaceful assembly.
“They are not criminals. They are protesters,” he said. “We will not back down until they are found and released.”
Elanu also criticised what he described as the selective enforcement of the law by security agencies.
“The same police who are quick to descend on peaceful protesters are often seen looking the other way when bandits and herdsmen terrorise communities across the country,” he stated.
According to him, efforts to locate the arrested protesters initially led to three police facilities — Maitama Police Station, the notorious Abattoir Station, and the Federal Capital Territory Command — but none of the detainees were found at the time.
The demonstration, organised in collaboration with other civil society groups, was part of a nationwide protest demanding a review of the Cybercrime Act, relief from worsening economic hardship, and an end to the emergency rule in Rivers State.
