No Victor, No Vanquished in the #EndBadGovernance Protest
By Taoreed Abdullahi
Despite the appeals from various stakeholders and leaders of thought across the country pleading with Nigerians not to engage in #endbadgovernance protests, Nigerians most especially the youths on August 1, 2024, trooped out to designated locations to vent their anger and express displeasure with the government on the state of the nation. If I may ask, why do Nigerians protest against bad governance? The simple answer is to let the government know and take a step in finding lasting solutions to the increase in the price of commodities in the market, inflation, and unemployment. The citizens have been turned into beggars who actually have to go through hell to put food on their tables. Nobody is exempted from this. Civil servants, businessmen, women, traders, and artisans can’t be sure of three square meals a day, devising various methods to skip a meal or two daily. The hardship is unbearable. To me, the protest was justifiable. This is because the only language our government understands is protest and industrial action. Must it lead to this before the government takes action? I think the parties involved have learned lessons.
The protest commenced peacefully in some parts of the country, especially in the southern parts of Nigeria, with some pockets of violence; it was made possible with the injunction sought by some state governors, especially Lagos and Ogun State, restricting protesters to certain locations. The move was proactive, and it actually worked to safeguard public infrastructures. The protest was only visible in Abuja in the North Central, while few people engaged in protest in other states of the region. But other Northern parts of the country have a large share of both peace and violence. The looting of both public and private malls and stalls by youths under the guise of protest. The zone also witnessed damage to infrastructure and government facilities. The worst of it was the hoisting of foreign flags and the call for the taking over of a duly elected government. Who does that and goes away with it? I think those arrested can easily differentiate between free movement and detention. The unfortunate part of the protest was that a lot of underage children were involved in the protest, calling for illegality. Who sends these young boys and girls messages? The question is still begging for answer. So many arrests were made by the security agents in the process to identify faces behind the scenes or the sponsors of these children.
In a proactive measure to prevent the protest from going beyond unexpected, President Bola Tinubu addressed the nation to douse the tension with a promise to ease the hardship and appeal to the Nigerians, especially youths, to sheath their sword and embrace consultation and dialogue in resolving the issue. But to youths and other stakeholders, they picked holes, for Mr. President to echo more on some of the areas that require attention. To some people, President Bola Tinubu should have chided the security agents, especially the Police, for the violation of human rights of journalists and protesters, extra-judicial killings, and manhandling of some critical issues, while other people think that the president should have spoken on the demands of the protesters. Despite President Bola Tinubu’s speech, protests continue in some parts of the states, forcing State Governors to declare a curfew. The protest eventually came to an end with one million matches in Abija and other states to round off their activities calling the attention of government at all levels to take steps in ameliorating the suffering of the masses.
From the situation at hand, it seems as if the governments at all levels have put on their thinking caps to discuss and implement policies to ease the hardship. Let’s be hopeful that soon, the hardship will be a thing of the past.
To the various leaders of the protesters, this is a clarion call, the unity and progress of the country should be at the back of your mind. Nobody profits from violence. Billions of Naira were lost to the protest as Nigerians stayed indoors as if there was a curfew or a public holiday declared to restrict the movement of persons and vehicles. Business owners lost millions of Naira to the incident. A lot of government facilities were under lock and key. The loss was huge.
In another development, there is a need to appoint a leader or team of leaders who would coordinate your activities. This will help in identifying who should be responsible for security management and event coordination to prevent the protest from being hijacked by the hoodlums or those who have negative plans to destabilize our land. In the same vein, there should be a collaboration between the protesters and security agents. Certain designs should be fashioned out to be able to identify those who are not part of the protest. It will save a lot of things.
I would like to advise that there must be discipline among the protesters. A lot of protesters behaved barbaric. If you’re protesting, our infrastructure should not be damaged. It is our heritage, and we must protect them. It is our collective resources that the government used to put in place for our benefit. Unfortunately, this #endbadgovernance protest saw protesters who damaged streetlights and traffic lights. We saw protesters damage our infrastructure, looting stores and malls. This is stealing, and it should not be encouraged in our land. We have to remember that the damaged infrastructures and facilities would require another appropriation to put those damaged facilities in place. Our protest should not be destruction but peaceful. It’s our right to protest, but we should not use our own to cause traffic by blocking roads for others to use.
To our government. I hailed your courage to stomach insults, criticisms, and name-callings in whatever disguise. It is imperative to respond to issues at hand instead of letting them result in protests or demonstrations. Lessons may have been learned. Never again, we allow matters to be settled with the protests.
I salute the determination and boldness of the President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, President Bola Tinubu, for his wisdom in saving our democracy. Our president, you have made a lot of promises, may Almighty God continue to guide you. Nigerians are suffering, they are facing hardship. Mr. President, kindly implement policies that would keep youths busy; an idle hand is a devil’s workshop, creating employment opportunities. millions of Nigerian youths are roaming the streets without a tangible job, which is why the agitation is on the high side. Mr. President, we plead with you to release those who were arrested during the protest. I know you as a leader who cherishes freedom and you support the emancipation of people. I beg you to order the release of those who were in detention as a result of participating in the protest.
The leadership of the National Assembly deserves our accolades for organizing dialogue and stakeholders with the youths. Their efforts also play a role in reducing the pressure. It gladdens my heart that our leaders give youths opportunities to speak minds their minds. I acknowledged the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dr. Tajudeen Abass, and the sacrifice of members of the House of Representatives to cut their salary by fifty percent was heroic.
I also commended the State Governors who had initiated dialogue with the youths to address the yarning and aspirations of the youths. It’s high time our Governors engage our youths and create a conducive atmosphere for our youths to strive. The palliative is a good thing but it can’t solve the hunger challenge in the land. We must put in place jobs and opportunities that would ease the burden. Our infrastructure needs your attention. Our Governors in the Northern part of the country need to intensify efforts towards reducing out-of-school children. The engagement of youths, especially underaged, in the protest was an indication that there is much to be done to keep the children in school. Education plays a critical role in emancipating their minds.
To traditional rulers, community leaders, politicians, security agents especially the police, journalists, and a host of others, thank you for toying the line of peace and tranquility. No victor and no vanquish, we are all the winners.
