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Lawyer and former Minister of Youth and Sports Solomon Dalung has called on authorities to investigate an unfamiliar gas substance reportedly used on crowds at the #OccupyNASS protest.
Dalung warned that the government must clarify the use of the unfamiliar gas.
On Tuesday, hundreds of people gathered at the National Assembly to demand that the 2026 Electoral Act Amendment Bill include real-time electronic transmission of election results.
During the protest, security personnel reportedly used an unfamiliar gas.
Activist Omoyele Sowore described it as “nerve gas”, saying at the protest venue, “For the first time, the police are using nerve gas on Nigerians.”
Sowore claimed the substance was released from “a compressed container that penetrates through your skin,” and added that “about two people have collapsed inside this place now.”
Speaking on News Central’s show, Breakfast Extra on Wednesday, Dalung said, “The history of the struggle is anchored in the fact that an oppressor will not raise his knee on the neck of the oppressed unless being forced to do so.”
He added, “I don’t want us to continue to promote what was used as tear gas. No, it wasn’t. Even from their video that you’ve seen, that the substances were pressed and it went straight into the atmosphere. And the impact… even this morning I still feel irritation of impact on my body that was not covered and my face.”
Dalung also referenced claims regarding alleged imports of toxic substances, saying, “This government needs to explain that the substance that was used on Nigerians must be investigated. Because already there is an allegation by the former governor of Kaduna that the national security adviser imported into this country poisonous substances.
“For whatever reason, that has not been explained. And then here you have a very unique approach to dealing with a protest that has been introduced by the Nigerian government, meaning that this government is willing to kill to remain in power.”
The issue has also been raised by former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai, who wrote to the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) on January 30, 2026, seeking clarification on the alleged procurement of approximately 10 kilograms of thallium sulphate from a supplier in Poland.
“I am writing as a concerned citizen to seek clarification and reassurance regarding information available to the political opposition leadership about a procurement of approximately 10 kilograms of thallium sulphate by the Office of the National Security Adviser, reportedly from a supplier in Poland,” El-Rufai wrote in the letter, shared on his official X account on Sunday.
He added, “Given that thallium salts are highly toxic and tightly controlled substances, I believe it is important – for public safety, democratic accountability and for maintaining public trust – to confirm the following details,” including the substance’s intended purpose, supplier identity, authorisation, quantity, storage, and regulatory oversight in coordination with agencies such as NAFDAC and the NCDC.
