Poland has firmly denied accusations that its citizens, who were arrested by security operatives in Kano, Nigeria, displayed Russian flags during an anti-government protest. The six Polish nationals, including students and a lecturer, were detained on August 6 amidst the #EndBadGovernance demonstrations, which saw Nigerians voicing their discontent over the country’s economic hardships. Alongside the Poles, six Spanish nationals were also apprehended.
Peter Afunanya, spokesperson for Nigeria’s Department of State Services (DSS), stated that the Poles were detained “because of where they were found during the protests and for displaying foreign flags.” However, the Polish foreign ministry has categorically denied these allegations.
According to TVP World, a Polish international news network, the ministry clarified that the students and their lecturer were not involved in the protests but were merely taking photographs. The detainees, students of African Studies at the Oriental Studies Faculty of the University of Warsaw, were in Nigeria as part of an exchange programme at Bayero University, Kano. The group had arrived in Nigeria on August 1 and was scheduled to return to Poland in early September.
Anna Modzelewska, Press Officer for the University of Warsaw, emphasised that securing the release of the students is the institution’s top priority. “Freeing the UW [University of Warsaw] students is our priority. We must do everything in our power for that to happen as quickly as possible,” she said. The University’s Rector, Alojzy Nowak, is reportedly in direct contact with the detainees as efforts to clarify the charges continue.
Poland’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Jakub Wisniewski, has also called on Nigerian authorities to ensure the safe return of the students. Commenting on the allegations of flag-waving, Wisniewski expressed scepticism: “I personally find this claim hard to believe. We are urging for their safe return home, where their loved ones are anxiously waiting for them.”
Meanwhile, former Director General of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, Professor Bola Akinterinwa, urged the Polish government to exercise patience. He pointed out that the students were not apprehended on campus but on the streets during the protests, making it necessary for Nigerian authorities to conduct a thorough investigation. “The Polish government has to be patient and allow the investigation to be completed. If, after the investigation, they feel that the students didn’t get justice, they can then intervene,” Akinterinwa advised.
Adding to the calls for their release, Omooba Ayoola, Chairman of the All Progressives Congress in Poland, appealed to Nigerian President Bola Tinubu to facilitate the return of the detained students and their lecturer. Ayoola, who resides in Warsaw, urged President Tinubu to consider the academic nature of the students’ visit and to act in the spirit of fostering deeper bilateral cooperation between the two nations.
“It is regretted that the Polish nationals were found at the wrong place and at the wrong time,” Ayoola said in a statement. “However, these students are in the country for academic exchange programmes, and we should guard against anything that could hinder deeper academic cooperation between the two countries. I, therefore, plead that President Tinubu should passionately look into this issue and help these students regain their freedom so that they can focus on their primary purpose of coming to Nigeria.”
