#ENDSARS PART II
I am still in full support of the #ENDSARS movement currently sweeping Nigeria. Nigerians have every right to protest the kind of treatment they have received from our security apparatus. While we speak on the atrocities of SARS, we cannot forget the incessant delays and extortion of the citizens by other security departments, including the police, military, customs, and the Nigerian Road Safety officers etc. All these outfits have used their position of authority to unnecessarily harass innocent citizens while extorting and forcing them to part with their hard-earned money. So, the #ENDSARS protest should never be taken as being directed to Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) alone – but should be directed to all our protective services members!
Unfortunate Turn of Events:
It is unfortunate that this candid and well-coordinated peaceful protest have now devolved to incessant looting, assault, and wanton destruction of property. We are all aware, based on information from social media that these acts of carnage are being perpetuated by thugs who are taking advantage of the protest environment to wreak havoc on other peoples’ properties. Let us be clear, nothing good will ever come out of burning and looting of property. In fact, some of the affected persons are innocent citizens who have absolutely nothing to do with SARS or our security apparatus. We cannot and should not bite our nose to spite our face. When we burn police offices and destroy government property, remember that we are the government and by destroying government properties, we are in essence destroying our own properties. Therefore, as much as I fully support the protests, we should be cautiously mindful of the work of these miscreants who may derail any gains achieved by our youth who have been peacefully stating their case to our hapless government. We as a people must collectively denounce these wanton destructions, burning and looting of property while continuing our support for peaceful protests.
Government Shot Sighted at Lekki Toll Gate:
I cannot fantom who is the person advising our security chiefs. How did they come up with the conclusion that sending the military to tangle with angry and protesting youth will ever end well? Furthermore, what ever happened to rubber bullets, tear gas, water cannons and other nonlethal forms of crowd control? Why use real bullets to disperse a crowd that is demonstrating peacefully, a right that is enshrined in our constitution? These actions reveal the level of knowledge possessed by our leaders and individuals to whom we have entrusted our affairs. The truth of the matter is that our current crop of political leaders are simply inept and have only one concern and that is how best to enrich themselves. Understand that our leadership have come to take the average Nigerian for granted. Anyone who peruses social media is familiar and aware of the atrocities being committed by our security agents. Even the leadership of these security agents are fully aware of these crimes to humanity. However, they believe the average Nigerian will never rise up to mistreatment being meted out to them. In fact, they all are scratching their heads and wondering what is happening to Nigerians who have been so used to suffering, that they have accepted it as the norm. That is why they sent the military. They actually believe that regardless, these protesters will simply disperse, and this too shall come to pass. However, and to their surprise, it motivated the protesters and actually attracted these other elements with hoodlums joining the fray and using the situation to loot, destroy and burndown property. Their actions speak volumes regarding their qualification for the positions they all hold.
Buhari Slow To Act As Usual:
With all this chaos going on all over the country, our president, the one and only “Baba Go Slow” is yet again slow to act. I will bet that if Muhammadu Buhari had followed up his first promise to disband SARS with a press conference, the protest may not have devolved to what is transpiring today. When our children decided to take their grievances public, all they want is for the adults in the room to assuage their fears and acknowledge their pains. President Buhari, for whatever reason refused to heed the call from some quarters to speak to Nigerians. This oversight let to the protest lasting longer than it could have if protesters were convinced that the president heard their cries and is willing to attend to their concerns. But the longer he stayed in his cocoon, the louder the cry from his citizens for relief. It was this delay that offered the opportunity for some miscreants to cease the chance and create chaos. I do not know if this is a failure of the president’s advisers who should have anticipated the enormity of the protests or simply the stubborn nature of the president who may have refused to listen to his advisers. Regardless, his inability to quickly speak with the protesters to assure them that his promise to address their five-point demands is real and will be met within a specific timeline. So, we must lay the entire blame for the degeneration of the protests to unnecessary looting and burning, including the loss of lives, squarely at the foot of our president. The lessons here is that Nigerian citizens despite being a very resilient people, could explode once they have had their full of the shenanigans of the elite. This potential has been repeated over and over and I cannot fantom why our leaders do not understand this and continue to treat Nigerians like sub-human species.
Where Are Our Representatives:
Since the onset of the protests, only a handful of our elected officials have acknowledged and/or lent their voices to the unrest in the country. One will wonder, are not these people elected to represent these very people protesting? Why are they not coming forward and supporting their constituents who have been crying for help and protection from police brutality? The main reason is simply that they do not care. They are all standing behind the tall grass and watching their country burn to the ground – all the while silent because they do not want to challenge their political party apparatus or be identified with any faction. Their silence is simply to protect their fat salaries and allowances, hoping that their constituents may not notice that they are hiding behind the tall grass. These elected officials with their police protection and sirens are not subject to the incessant stop and search the average citizens go through daily, hence their surprise as to why people are protesting. The saddest part of this entire affair is that our elected officials know too well that regardless of how badly they treat us, we will still vote them into power during the next election. Just like the SARS officers know that killing a citizen has no resultant consequences, our elected officials understand too well that their inaction and lack of productivity will not impact their ability to be elected during the next go round.
Our Lazy Youth:
Throughout these protests, the youth have continued to scream that they are not lazy. But let us pause for one minute and assume that our kids are lazy. The question should be, where and how did they learn to be lazy. The answer is simple…from us their fathers and leaders. An Igbo proverb goes thus “when the rooster is mating with the hen, the chicks watch and learn.” Meaning, while our politicians, who could barely feed themselves get into power and suddenly becomes millionaires, our youth watch and learn that there is no value to hard work. When individuals who do not possess the qualification are appointed and/or buy their way into positions of power and control, our youth learn that money will buy you anything so there is no reason to work hard. Additionally, when we do not have good roads to move our goods and services, how does the government want businesses to be able to sell their products and use their profits to create jobs for the youth. When we do not have steady electricity, how does our leaders hope for innovators to build factories and create jobs for our teeming youth? We better take a look at the mirror. The behavior of our youth today is our creation and until we acknowledge those facts, we are deluding ourselves and in essence painting the wrong wall.
It Is Time To Restore Calm:
It is encouraging to know that finally our children have decided enough is enough, and by that telling us they are grown and know when not treated correctly. However, and given the rise in looting, burning and wanton destruction of property, it is time for all to call for calm! It is time to take a break and see if our president will live up to his proclamations. Whenever Buhari talks about what his plans are for the country, I will tend to believe him, however, having surrounded himself with friends and yes people, he seems powerless to push them to execute his agenda. These protests should serve as a wake-up call for our president and other elected officials. I think it is time for them to begin to deliver on the political promises they made to the masses if they do not want a repeat of what is currently transpiring in my beloved country. Now that the genie is out of the bottle, we better watch out. There is a lot of work left to be done in Nigeria and my advice to our President is that he should use the remainder of his time as President to leave a legacy for himself. A word is enough for the wise.
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