POLICE made several arrests yesterday when they broke up a protest by thousands of students in Ibadan following the assassination of Ms Kudiratu Abiola. The senior wife of the jailed Nigerian Opposition leader, Chief Moshood Abiola, died shortly after being shot in the head by unknown gunmen on Tuesday.
The police bolstered security measures in the city and, blocked access to the headquarters of the Oyo state military governor, Col Ike Nwosu, where the protest march was going.
The crowd dispersed without any clashes between police and protesters, but several people, believed to be organisers of the march, were arrested.
Thousands of people, mostly students, had gathered for the march in front of Ibadan University as anger spread over Ms Abiola's death.
The protesters chanted slogans critical of the military regime and demanded the release of Chief Abiola and acceptance of the June 1993 presidential election results.
Chief Abiola has been in detention on treason charges since June 1994 for declaring himself president on the first anniversary of the election which he claimed to have won, but which was annulled by the military.
Ms Abiola's violent death sent (shock waves across the country sparking a wave of condemnations in Nigeria and abroad.
The senior wife of the Muslim opposition leader and millionaire newspaper tycoon was also one of the main figures of the Nigerian opposition group.
Married to Chief Abiola in 1973, she was his favourite wife. He is reputed to have 15.
Since the chief's imprisonment, Ms Abiola and her sons had been looking after his business interests, including the daily newspaper Coricoro headed by another wife, Ms Doyin Abiola.
Last month Ms Abiola and two printers appeared in court charged with conspiracy and making false statements. They pleaded not guilty, and her trial was due to start on July 17th.
The Nigerian police chief said they had "directed a full scale investigation" into Ms Abiola's assassination and "no stone will be left unturned in unravelling the perpetrators of this heinous crime."
In London the press freedom group Article 19 has called for an international inquiry into the assassination.
"We fear that this killing may have been a politically motivated murder carried out by Nigeria's military government or its agents," the anti censorship group said in a statement.
"It follows other violent attacks on leading critics of the regime and raises the spectre of a new and frightening pattern of government repression.
"The group said in a letter to the head of state, Gen Sani Abacha "If the Nigerian military government had no hand in this killing, it should immediately appoint a judicial inquiry to investigate just who was responsible and to ensure that they are brought to justice."
