Yoruba Nation Fear in Osogbo as major businesses shut down to avoid looting, violence

 

As a result of the rally organised by the Yoruba Nation in Osogbo on Saturday, most businesses in the capital city shut down their operations over security concerns.

 

Most affected was the popular Osun Mall located at Fakunle Area of the state capital.

Most customers were locked out of the mall and outside its main gate.

 gathered during a visit to the mall that its management locked up the complex to avoid a repetition of events on the night of Saturday 17th of October, 2020.

Recalls that on Saturday 17th October 2020 scores of armed young men riding motorcycles stormed the mall, vandalised and carted away items worth millions of naira especially smartphones and laptops.

Other businesses and shopping complexes followed suit while others conducted their business with apprehension, awaiting the outcome of the rally.

Sakiru Idowu, the manager of a popular phone shop inside the mall told DAILY POST that when the news got to them in the mall that the Yoruba Nation was meeting for a protest in Osogbo, they took it as nothing but when they got wind of the arrival of Sunday Adeyemo aka Sunday Igboho fear and panic gripped everyone in the mall and the decision to close the main gate of the mall was reached and action was taken instantly.

A customer, Isiaka said he was at the mall to get some groceries but was surprised to find the gate under lock and key.

He said, “I then asked a gateman and vigilante at the gate reasons for the closure and was told it is because of the ongoing Yoruba Nation rally in Osogbo to forestall a repeat of the incident that happened during the EndSARS protests where some hoodlums hijacked the protests and raided the mall.”

Aremu Kehinde said he was at the mall at noon but discovered that the gate was locked because of the Yoruba Nation rally.

 had reported earlier that scores of Yoruba Nation agitators dressed in various outfits had stormed Osogbo in the morning.

It was gathered that the protest had started from the Africa area of the state capital to the main protest ground at Freedom Park.

Sunday Igboho’s arrival at the venue of the protest, which had a heavy presence of security personnel drawn from the Nigerian Police, Directorate of State Security (DSS), Joint Task Force (JTF) and Amotekun Corps heightened the fear among residents.