A 23-year-old trainee journalist with Nigerian Television station Channels TV was killed on Monday after he was hit by a stray bullet.
Precious Owolabi was covering Monday’s clashes between police and some Muslim protesters in Abuja.
Mr Owolabi was reporting on the clashes as part of his national service – a compulsory one-year programme for graduates in Nigeria.
A senior police officer and at least four protesters were also reported to have died.
Rampaging Shia Muslim group members had disrupted commercial activities and vehicular movement in Abuja.
The protesters were demonstrating at the Federal Secretariat, Abuja but a crackdown by the police sparked further violence.
Corps Member Serving With Channels TV Dies In Shiite, Police Clash
The management and staff of Channels Television are greatly saddened by the untimely and unfortunate death of such a promising journalist.https://t.co/E1xNAhO2r1 pic.twitter.com/aalUgz2Yt4
— Channels Television (@channelstv) July 22, 2019
The protesters also burnt vehicles as police officers tried to crackdown on the protest.
Earlier this month gun shots were fired outside the National Assembly building during another clash between the police and the same protesters.
I most deeply commiserate with the families of Precious Owolabi, an NYSC member with @channelstv, & Deputy Commissioner of @PoliceNG, Usman Umar, of the FCT Police Command, who died during the violent protest by members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) in Abuja yesterday.
— Muhammadu Buhari (@MBuhari) July 23, 2019
The protesters were making an attempt to enter the complex, leading to the confrontation with police.
The leader of the Shia Muslims, Ibrahim Zakzaky has been in detention since 2015. His supporters who dominated the protesters have been demanding his release.
Source: Africafeeds.com
