Mr Princewill Essien, a law books seller at the Cross River State High Court premises, says he incurred huge losses following the invasion of his bookshop by hoodlums who hijacked the EndSARS protest.
Essien told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Calabar on Wednesday that the protesters broke into his shop and carted away books and other items.
“I received a call that the protesters had entered my shop, but I could not go out because the state had become volatile.
“I got there the following morning to find out that my shop has been torched and several items taken away, I cannot count the number of books taken,” he said.
The shop owner listed the items taken away by the hoodlums to include, books, waist coats, shirts, trousers, wigs, furniture among others.
Essien expressed worry that a well-intended exercise such as the EndSARS protest could suddenly turn against the poor and ordinary people.
“ I invested a huge sum of money to equip the shop in preparation for the resumption of activities in the court, I do not know where to begin,” he said.
In a related development, heaps of items allegedly stolen from government facilities during the EndSARS protests are said to be resurfacing at strategic points in Calabar, the state capital.
NAN reports that the state government had announced a N100,000 reward for anybody with valuable information for the recovery of stolen items.
Meanwhile, apart from the ongoing door-to-door search by security personnel, there is a state wide announcement urging those who looted items during the protest to return them.(NAN)
