HUMAN rights lawyer, Mr Femi Falana (SAN), has called on the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), to abide by his oath of office by calling on the police not to disrupt upcoming #EndSARS protests.

Falana, who is the Interim Chairman, Alliance on Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond, said this in a statement on Thursday titled, ‘Nigeria Police Force lacks the power to ban public protests in Nigeria’.

The Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, Hakeem Odumosu, had said the police would not allow anyone to stage another #EndSARS protest ahead of the first anniversary of the protests of last year.

However, Falana said Buhari, who himself took part in protests while he was running for office, should call on the police to respect the rights of citizens.

He added, “It is public knowledge that General Muhammadu Buhari (as he then was) and other leaders of the ruling All Progressive Congress took part in public rallies against fuel hike in January 2012 and protests against insecurity in November 2014.

“To that extent, the Buhari administration ought to restrain the police from banning peaceful rallies against police brutality on October 20, 2021, in any manner whatsoever and however.”

Falana noted that the law guarantees Nigerians the right to hold public meetings, rallies and processions in the country.