By Empress Blessing
A social media post by a man identified as Rock Yusuf says he wrote out instructions for his wife and children, transferred money, and made burial and financial plans before joining Monday’s #FreeNnamdiKanuNow protest in Abuja. In the widely circulated message, Yusuf says he had ₦132,000 in his account, sent ₦100,000 to his wife and told her how to use it “if I’m kiiiiiled in this peaceful protest.”
According to the post, Yusuf also told his wife to ask his younger brother to sell two cameras — which he described as worth ₦5 million — to raise funds to care for their two sons and to start a business for their future. The post adds that if he were only arrested, he expected to be released within a month and urged his family to use the money until he returned.
The message comes amid heightened tensions around the #FreeNnamdiKanuNow demonstrations, which were scheduled to march to the Aso Rock Villa on October 20 and have drawn legal challenges from security agencies. A Federal High Court in Abuja recently declined an ex parte application by the Nigeria Police seeking an interim ban on the rally, although the case remains active in court.
Protests under the #FreeNnamdiKanuNow banner have led to heavy security deployments in parts of the Federal Capital Territory, and some outlets reported clashes and the use of teargas in areas where demonstrators gathered. Organizers say the protest is a peaceful demand for the release of Nnamdi Kanu; authorities have warned against breaches of public order.
Human-rights and protest-watch groups say posts like Yusuf’s underscore the level of personal risk participants feel when mobilising on contentious political issues in Nigeria. Observers note the emotional content of first-person accounts can both humanise protests and inflame tensions, depending on how events unfold. (Social media post by Rock Yusuf shared publicly on Facebook/Instagram/X.)