Members of the Akwa Ibom community in Rivers State staged a protest on Friday, at the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) premises on Moscow Road, Port Harcourt.

Naija News learnt that the protest was due to the suspicious death of their 23-year-old kinsman, Asher Christopher, a cleaner employed by the company who reportedly died within the facility under unclear circumstances on Tuesday.

The demonstrators, comprising both youths and women, braved heavy rain to gather at the company’s entrance around 10 a.m., wielding placards and palm fronds while demanding the release of Asher’s body.

The protest comes a day after Asher’s father, Dan Christopher, publicly expressed doubts about the circumstances surrounding his son’s death and called for justice.

The protesters split into two groups, with one group marching toward the headquarters of the Rivers State Police Command, located near the NNPC premises.

They displayed a large banner with Asher’s photo and the words “Justice for Asher,” alongside other placards with messages such as “Who killed Asher?”, “Where is Asher’s corpse?”, “NNPC, give us explanations,” and “We want justice.”

In response to the gathering crowd, security personnel at the NNPC quickly shut the gates to the premises.

Speaking to journalists, King Albert, the event coordinator for the Akwa Ibom community in Rivers State, shared that they were informed Asher had fallen from a building within the facility. However, no one from the company had witnessed the incident.

Albert, speaking on behalf of the deceased’s family and the community, demanded the immediate release of Asher’s body for an autopsy to determine the cause of death.

He questioned the company’s narrative, stating, “Our brother, Asher Dan Christopher, came to work on the 20th of this month only for us to get information that an incident occurred as at 10am. We got information by 4pm that the young man fell from this (pointing into a high rise building in the company) and died.

“But the same people are telling us that they were not present when the incident happened. We saw the clothes this young man wore on the 4th floor, while they were telling us that he fell from the 8th floor.

“Now, these people seize the corpse of the young man, refusing the family and the entire community of Akwa/Ibom people to see his corpse.

“So we are calling on the Commissioner of Police, the Rivers State Government and all respected individuals of this state to come into this matter because it is a matter of Akwa/Ibom State and Rivers State.”

Albert further pointed out inconsistencies in the company’s account, noting that Asher’s clothes were found on the 4th floor, despite claims that he had fallen from the 8th floor.

He expressed frustration that the company was withholding Asher’s body from his family and the Akwa Ibom community, preventing them from conducting an autopsy.

Albert called on the Rivers State Government, the Commissioner of Police, and other influential figures to intervene, emphasizing that the Akwa Ibom State Government was also aware of the situation.

“We need justice, we need an autopsy, and we need to see the body of this young man,” he insisted.

For over two hours, the protesters remained outside the NNPC premises without any company official addressing them. Eventually, they moved to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID) of the Rivers State Police Command to continue their protest.

Meanwhile, the spokesperson for the Rivers State Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, confirmed Asher’s death and stated that his body had been taken to a mortuary. She added that the police have launched an investigation into the incident.