In spite of heavy security backing, shots were fired on Wednesday morning by an Operation Yaki van escorting high profile prisoners from a court hearing to the Kaduna Convict Prison, when they were obstructed by thousands of angry Kaduna women on a procession to protest the non approval of a $350 million loan requested by the state government.
The women, with most of them having babies strapped to their backs, while on the procession along Independence Way, occupied the road and in a bid to clear a portion of the road, shots were fired.
Fielding questions from newsmen who tracked them up to the entrance of the Kaduna State House of Assembly, the State Woman Leader of International Women and Youth Development Revival, organisers of the protest, Saratu Abdulazeez, explained that it was targeted at expressing displeasure on the delays in approving of the loan by the Senate.
Abdulazeez said they are not accusing the representative go Kaduna Central Senatorial District, Senator Shehu Sani, of preventing the approval of the loan, but are only appealing to him to fast track its approval.
She said: We are here because we want our leader to assist our government in getting money needed to develop the state.
“We are not accusing Senator Shehu Sani of frustrating the loan request.
“We voted for him, we took him to Abuja.
“We are only pleading with him that he should listen to us, not accusing him.”
Also explaining why they embarked on the peaceful protest, the Kaduna Central Woman leader of the group, Amina Ali, said the NGO, which has been in existence for over two years, was begging that the loan is approved to ensure a better future for them and the generation yet unborn.
The protesting women, under the aegis of International Women and Youth Development Revival, had commenced the procession from the Murtala Mohammed Square at about 11am.
Other stop overs were at the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Kaduna Council Secretariat and the All Progressives Congress North West Secretariat before reaching the final point, the Kaduna State House of Assembly, where they delivered a letter to the Speaker, expressing their displeasure over the non approval of the loan request.