By Enyichukwu Enemanna
The Polish Foreign Ministry in Warsaw on Wednesday confirmed that its nationals studying in Nigeria have been released by authorities in the West African nation.
At least seven Polish nationals were among demonstrators arrested in North West state of Kano during an anti-government protest for raising Russian flags, an action Nigeria said was treasonable.
Heritage Times HT recalls that the Department of State Services (DSS) announced the arrest of the Poles and said they were undergoing interrogation.
Nigeria had warned against foreign interference in the #EndBadGovernance protests started August 1 in which citizens came out in their large numbers to demand effective governance system, saying “appropriate action” would be meted out to any “foreign entity residing in Nigeria” that directly or indirectly played a role in the demonstrations.
Spokesman for the Department of State Services (DSS), Dr. Peter Afunanya, said of the arrested Poles and others: “For the persons we have picked up from Kano because of where they were found during the protest and display of the foreign flag, that was two days ago.
“As a responsible security organisation, we owe it an obligation to do some verification and ascertain basic reasons and circumstances for some cases.
Following their arrest, a Polish foreign ministry spokesperson rejected the accusation that they were waving the flags and said they were merely in the vicinity of the protest.
“The Polish students have been released and are in Kano,” the Polish foreign ministry said in a post on social media platform X. “Thank you to everyone involved in the release of the Polish citizens!”
Some protesters had waved Russian flags during protests in northern states, underscoring concerns about increased Russian activity in western African region.
