By Ola Kay
A human rights lawyer, Ebun Olu Adegoruwa , SAN, has called on the #EndBadGovernanceinNigeria protesters to embrace dialogue with government, following the hijack of the nationwide demonstrations by elements described as the fifth columnists.
The lawyer for the Take it Back Movement explained in a statement on Friday that: “Though the intention of the organisers was to achieve peaceful and well-coordinated protests, it would seem that fifth columnists and some angry persons infiltrated the ranks of the protesters to derail their laudable mission.
“I appeal to the protesters to withdraw themselves from their various protest grounds and to suspend the protests immediately and indefinitely, to give room for meaningful dialogue and engagement with the government.
“Given that the protests were said to have been hijacked by sponsored agents, it is necessary to avoid further losses and casualties.
“The organisers of the protests and their representatives should embrace dialogue with the government,” he said.
The senior lawyer stated on behalf of the group that it regretted the death tolls and losses that resulted from the demonstrations.
Adegoruwa said that the fallouts were not part of the plans of the organizers of the protests.
Adegoruwa, SAN, expressed “sincere condolences to the employers and families of the security personnel and also to the protesters, praying to God to comfort them and to grant them the fortitude to bear the irreparable losses.”
The Senior Advocate had on the eve of the protests on Wednesday urged the organisers to reduce the 10-day action to one day.
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He appealed to President Bola Tinubu to address the nation and engage the protesters’ representatives and after this set up a committee comprising men and women of integrity to meet with the protesters to address the issues that they have raised.
Tension was palpable in parts of Nigeria on Thursday as the much-touted #EndBadGovernance protests finally kicked off in almost all the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
On the first and second day of the protests, policemen were seen dispersing the demonstrators, mostly youths, using tear gas, even as civil society organisations (CSOs) condemned the action of the police.
The protests turned violent when some hoodlums took advantage of the demonstrations and looted public and private assets.This led to efforts to curb the violence, leading the state governors of Kano, Borno, Yobe, Katsina, Nasarawa, Jigawa and other two others to impose curfews in states and volatile local government areas (LGAs) in their states.
About 17 deaths were recorded, just as the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun stated that a policeman was murdered in the line of duty, while some others were injured, apart from police stations that got burnt in the course of the violence that erupted.
However, some of the demands of the protesters include reversal of petroleum subsidies and the forex regime, address perennial food inflation, unemployment and wasteful spending by those in power. The organizers also called for the immediate reforms of the Independent National Electoral Commission and the anti-graft agency, EFCC, for better efficiency.
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