Just like Kano, Borno, and Yobe states, the government declared curfew following the destruction, looting, stealing, highway blockade, and vandalism that trailed the demonstration in the Mararraba area, the border between Nasarawa State and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

The Karu LGA Chairman’s media aide, Danbaba Magaji, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.

“The Executive Chairman of Karu Local Government Council, James Thomas, after due consideration, has imposed a curfew across Karu LGA from 6 pm to 6 am from today until further notice,” the statement read.

The authorities explained that they imposed the curfew “as a precautionary measure to ensure the full security of Karu LGA.”

“The curfew will restrict the movement of people, Okada and Keke riders, all shop owners, and motorists in Karu LGA,” the statement said.

Thousands of mostly young people poured onto the streets across Nigeria on Thursday to protest against the country’s worst cost-of-living crisis in a generation, prompting police to fire tear gas to disperse the crowds.

Many businesses across the country shuttered Thursday amid fears the protests could be a replay of the deadly 2020 demonstrations against police brutality in the West African nation—oor a wave of violence similar to last month’s protests in Kenya, where a tax hike led to chaos in the capital, Nairobi.

Carrying banners, bells, and Nigeria’s green-and-white flag, the protesters chanted songs as they listed their demands, including the reinstatement of gas and electricity subsidies whose removal as part of the government’s reform efforts to grow the economy has had a knock-on effect on the price of just about everything else.