The local boxers association in the Mararaba area, Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, says it has rejected an N8million offer from #EndSARS promoters to participate in their protests.
Recall that some group of Nigerian youths had taken to streets protesting against the brutality of the now-disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad of the Nigerian Police Force, a development that led to the destruction of business and property across the country.
Speaking with DAILY NIGERIAN on Thursday, the Mararaba chapter chairman of the association, Idris Bambarewa, said the association was approached by the promoters but rejected the offer in view of the negative implication of the protest in the country.
Mr Bambarewa said the offer was for them to join the protest, carry placards as well as destroy government properties during the EndSARS mayhem.
Mr Bambarewa said they rejected the offer and refused to join the protest because of the negative implication of the protest to the society and state at large.
According to him, his group has over 5,000 members who are gainfully employed as local boxers and are law-abiding citizens, “would always desist from criminal activities”.
He said: “The instruction was for us to stop vehicular movements into Abuja from the Mararaba axis and destroy properties belonging to the government.”
“Some people came in three black jeeps at night and offered N8M for my group to block the road and protest but I rejected the offer.
“I don’t even know them and we are leaving in peace in Nasarawa State.
“They threatened to use force but I told them my group is law-abiding and could not engage in what we aren’t sure of its motive.”
He explained that he summoned an emergency meeting with his members and warned that anybody caught participating in the protest would be deregistered from the association and handed over to the security agencies.
“They said that we should destroy government property and that they would show us where food meant for palliatives are kept.
“We as an association generating about N8million monthly and cannot destroy our earnings that we labored for,” Mr Bambarewa stressed.
He stated that the protest would have drawn them backward, saying that doing so would cause serious damages to their business and properties.
He, therefore, pleaded with the state government to build a permanent structure for them to avoid intruders who would want to destabilize them and create confusion in society.
“We are appealing to the state government to get us a permanent site that we can operate to avoid people coming to use us, we can generate close to 2 million monthly as revenue.
“Apart from revenue for the government, we can create more business opportunities as companies will come and invest in our local derby,” he stated.
