Today, a riot broke out between the police and the Civil Defence Corps.
Two Civil Defence officers were directing traffic at the Wadata Junction, near the People's Democratic Party secretariat. The police came down as a show of force to protect a guy picking up the nomination form for the presidential race, and noticed the NSCDC officers were giving conflicting directions, and two accidents were narrowly avoided, witnesses said.
The Commissioner of Police ordered the NSCDC guys to let the police take over, but the corpers said no.
They were chased off the junction, but came back with reinforcements and started throwing bottles, stones and sticks at the police, who responded with tear gas.
The Commissioner of Police and three other officers were injured.
The NSCDC top shot in the city said the police threatened to shoot one of their officers who tried to intervene.
The police said they showed "maturity and restraint."
It goes without saying our report on the incident was almost novel length before I got to it. And the Commissioner of Police Alobi was a heroic figure, restraining himself in the face of gross provocation...
Inspector General Sunday Ehindero said: "There should be an investigation, but I think the Commissioner deserves a round of applause."
Mind you I saw the NSCDC in action on the road just outside of Kaduna. There were four of them, all directing motorists to go at once. It was such a chaotic melee, other street kids had joined in with the waving of arms and the stamping of feet.