Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, former minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili, Senior lawyer, Femi Falana and a chieftain of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Dr. Garus Gololo have faulted President Bola Tinubu’s nationwide address, saying it failed to address the brutal assault on #EndBadGovernance protesters by security agencies and other issues raised by the agitators.
The protests, which began on August 1, have seen thousands of Nigerians engage in street demonstrations to demand an end to bad governance, corruption, economic hardship, fuel subsidy removal, unemployment, and insecurity. In the course of the demonstrations, some persons were killed as the protests turned violent in some states.
President Tinubu addressed Nigerians in his first nationwide speech after four day and called for calm, insisting that there was no going back on the subsidy removal. He asked the protesters to suspend their action, assuring that efforts of his administration would soon be visible and concrete for everyone to see, feel and enjoy.
But in a statement titled: “The hunger march as universal mandate,” Prof. Soyinka decried the attacks on protesters across the country and faulted the steps reeled out by Tinubu.
According to him, the serving of bullets where bread was pleaded is an ominous retrogression. “The time is long overdue, surely, to abandon, permanently, the anachronistic resort to lethal means by the security agencies of governance,” he admonished.
The statement read: “I set my alarm clock for this morning to ensure that I did not miss President Bola Tinubu’s impatiently awaited address to the nation on the current unrest across the nation. His outline of government’s remedial action since inception, aimed at warding off just such an outbreak, will undoubtedly receive expert and sustained attention both for effectiveness and in content analysis.
“My primary concern, quite predictably, is the continuing deterioration of the state’s seizure of protest management, an area in which the presidential address fell conspicuously short of. Such short-changing of civic deserving, regrettably, goes to arm the security forces in the exercise of impunity and condemns the nation to a seemingly unbreakable cycle of resentment and reprisals.
“Live bullets as state response to civic protest – that becomes the core issue. Even tear gas remains questionable in most circumstances, certainly an abuse in situations of clearly peaceful protest. Hunger marches constitute a universal S.O.S, not peculiar to the Nigerian nation. They belong, indeed, in a class of their own, never mind the collateral claims emblazoned on posters. They serve as summons to governance that a breaking point has been reached and thus, a testing ground for governance awareness of public desperation. The tragic response to the ongoing hunger marches in parts of the nation, and for which notice was served, constitutes a retrogression that takes the nation even further back than the deadly culmination of the watershed EndSARS protests. It evokes pre-independence – that is, colonial – acts of disdain, a passage that induced the late stage pioneer Hubert Ogunde’s folk opera Bread and bullets, earning that nationalist serial persecutions and proscriptions by the colonial government.
“The nation’s security agencies cannot pretend unawareness of alternative models for emulation, civilised advances in security intervention. Need we recall the nationwide 2022/23 editions of what is generally known as the ‘Yello Vest’ movement in France? Perhaps, it is time to make such scenarios compulsory viewing in policing curriculum. In all of the coverage that I watched, I did not catch one single instance of a gun levelled at protesters, much less fired at them even during direct physical confrontations. The serving of bullets where bread is pleaded is ominous retrogression, and we know what that eventually proves – a prelude to far more desperate upheavals, not excluding revolutions.
“The time is long overdue, surely, to abandon, permanently, the anachronistic resort to lethal means by the security agencies of governance. No nation is so under-developed, materially impoverished, or simply internally insecure as to lack the will to set an example. All it takes is to recall its own history, then exercise the will to commence a lasting transformation, inserting a break in the chain of lethal responses against civic society. Today’s marchers may wish to consider adopting the key songs of Hubert Ogunde’s ‘Bread and Bullets,’ if only to inculcate a sense of shame in the continuing failure to transcend the lure of colonial inheritance, where we all were at the receiving end. One way or the other, this vicious cycle must be broken.”
Ezekwesili kicks
In a separate reaction, Oby Ezekwesili said President Tinubu’s speech did not address the demands of the protesters.
In a post on X, Ezekwesili said the speech “reads like a page from your party manifesto.”
She said Tinubu missed an opportunity to explain the immediate actions his administration had taken to address the demands of those on the streets.
He also asked the president to rein in the security operatives over the attack on protesters and order an investigation into the killing of protesters by security agents, fish out and punish those found guilty to serve as deterrence to others.
“As one of the millions of Nigerians who were at church when you delivered your late-in-coming speech to citizens on the #EndBadGovernancelnNigeria protests, let me loudly say it was terribly underwhelming to read.
“Your speech reads like a page from your party manifesto and terribly failed to connect to what our citizens on the streets are angry and protesting about.
“Your speech is quite a monumental missed opportunity to placate citizens with sound answers and outline convincing evidence-based actions that you and your @NigeriaGov will immediately take to address the priority #BadGovernance concerns.”
She asked Tinubu to accept the responsibility that comes with his position rather than trade blames with some imaginary enemies.
“Your speech was sadly again written out of a mindset that is focused on ‘getting back at our enemies’. Imaginary enemies at that. No true leader has the luxury of having ‘enemies’ among their citizens; not at all.
“A public leader becomes the leader of all with a mind that does not think of any as his or her enemies.
“This is why it is ever unfortunate to see Nigerian public leaders talk and behave like losers on matters of public governance, where they are expected to rally their all citizens behind the common purpose of nation building.
“It is nauseating to observe this recurrent innate unwillingness of Nigerian public leaders to admit responsibility for the demands of the same public leadership that they kill and maim citizens to assume.”
Address diversionary, Gololo, APC chieftain
Dr. Gololo described the broadcast as watery, diversionary and an attempt to deny Nigerians the genuine demand to end hardship in the land.
“After listening to the early morning broadcast, I became more confused and ashamed of the country I call my own. I was actually expecting the President to address the demands of Nigerians bit by bit according to the economic realities. But now, I am short of words because he rather talked of coastal roads and super highways being supervised by David Umahi and others. We all knew that his son was the contractor handling the coastal roads.
“I want us to even talk of the need for this coastal road that was made a government priority project ahead of staple foods in Nigeria. It is obvious that President Tinubu does not think of the degree of hunger in the land, but to secure contracts for his sons and daughters.
“Before now, I had advised the protesters to hold their governors to account for years of embezzlement of project funds, but today, President Tinubu has shown no remorse preparatory to end the hardship.
“I think that Nigerians are in for more troubles. He has just shown no remorse and a disregard for what is going on. While the protest is ongoing, people are afraid to go to work or the market to buy things, so the idea now is that people have to stay away while the protest lasts since he has failed to address their demands.”
The former member of the APC Board of Trustees (BOT), however, pleaded with those working closely with the President to ensure they advise him well to secure the unity of the country. “People should not just work for money. They should be patriotic in their dealings. President Tinubu should be well-advised before things get out of hand.”
Atiku reacts
Former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, dismissed President Tinubu’s nationwide broadcast for lacking credibility, bereft of solutions to the nation’s problems and for failing the integrity of presidential addresses on account of its “leakage.”
Atiku in a statement issued by his media aide, Paul Ibe, the former vice-president said: “President Bola Tinubu’s broadcast this morning, intended to quell the fervour of public protests against his administration’s poor governance, utterly misses the mark. His speech neglects the pressing economic hardships that have besieged Nigerian families since the very beginning of his tenure.
“This address lacks credibility and fails to offer any immediate, tangible solutions to the Nigerian people. Given the extensive publicity surrounding the protests and the threats issued by government officials against demonstrators, one would have expected President Tinubu to present groundbreaking reforms, particularly those aimed at reducing the exorbitant costs of governance.
“But alas, no such announcements were made. The President ignored the protesters’ demands, such as suspending the purchase of aircraft for the President, downsizing his bloated cabinet, or even eliminating the costly and burdensome office of the First Lady, who has been indulging in extravagant trips at the nation’s expense.
“In his lacklustre recorded speech, President Tinubu offered a superficial account of his so-called reforms, revealing his own tenuous grasp of policy as he failed to convince his audience. While the President has spoken, it is unfortunate that his words lack substance and respect for the protesters’ sentiments, leaving Nigerians with little faith in his reform agenda – if one exists at all.
What the speech of President Tinubu failed to say – Atiku
“We urge the President and his team to own up to their failures over the past 14 months and abandon the absurd theory that the protests are orchestrated by the opposition. This administration has failed on all fronts, even in the simple task of keeping a presidential speech confidential.
“Typically, presidential addresses are shared under embargo with media houses. However, the premature leak of this speech, allowing Nigerians to read along with the President in real-time, starkly illustrates the media nay Nigerians dwindling confidence in this administration.
“The opposition did not create the economic quagmire we find ourselves in; this disaster is solely the result of the Tinubu administration’s trial-and-error policies. It is high time they stopped the blame game and faced the reality of their failures.”
It didn’t address demands – Falana
Senior lawyer, Femi Falana, said the speech failed to address the key demand of the protesters: reversal of the policy of withdrawal of fuel subsidy.
He also condemned the repression of the peaceful protesters while commiserating with all those who lost loved ones in the protest. He called on the government to set up commissions of inquiry to bring to justice those responsible for the reckless killings.
The statement read in part:
In a very provocative manner, the Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio said that “while you protest, we shall be eating.” On his own part, Vice President Kashim Shettima said that the protesters are “idiots. ”
“However, in a desperate bid to prevent the protests from taking place, the federal government met with selected political, religious, and traditional leaders. The groups assured the federal government that the protests would not be allowed. Some phoney groups that were not involved in planning the protests announced that they were withdrawing from the protests. But as the government could not fully rely on such assurances. A number of lumpen elements were hurriedly assembled and mobilized to either disrupt the protests and/or stage counter protests in support of the government.
“On the eve of the protests, the governments of Lagos and Ogun States as well as the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, procured ex parte orders from the courts to confine the protesters to designated places. Even though the orders were not served on the organisers of the protests, the youths complied and gathered in the designated centres.
“To the utter embarrassment of the government, the protests were peacefully conducted in many states of the Federation. In the full glare of the media, thugs attacked the unarmed protesters while some overzealous police personnel shot and killed a number of protesters. Journalists have also been harassed and intimidated. We condemn the unprovoked attacks on journalists and peaceful protesters.
“It is the statutory responsibility of the Police to protect protesters against thugs who are the creation of criminal neglect. The Police should not hide under the guise of attacking thugs to attack peaceful protesters. Other thugs took advantage of such official lawlessness to unleash mayhem in some states. Thus, the official and the private thugs engaged in the destruction of public properties and looting of food and other items.
“The police became overwhelmed. Since the members of the anti-protest police squad were not equipped with canisters of teargas, water cannon, and rubber bullets, they shot and killed many unarmed protesters and other members of the public.
“In order to further intimidate the protesters, the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, has threatened that the military would intervene if the nationwide #EndBadGovernance protests continue unabated. However, in a few states, the Commissioners of Police adopted a professional approach and even provided water, and the peaceful protests continue in those states. Some governors have also addressed protesters and acknowledged the peaceful nature of the protests.
“Instead of threatening unarmed protesters, the military authorities should allow the police to continue to discharge its constitutional responsibility. Apart from a few trigger happy police officers who had shot and killed protesters, the Nigeria Police Force has handled the protests in a professional manner.
“We commiserate with the families of the patriots peaceful protesters that were killed and call on the Federal and State Governments t to set up Commissions of Inquiry, which should include representatives of credible human rights organisations and the NBA to investigate the killings with a view to bringing to justice prosecute the reckless murderers in Police uniform and ensuring that . The family members of the deceased should be adequately compensated by the federal government. The victims of the barbarous police killings should be identified and celebrated as heroes and heroines of the struggle for the emancipation of the downtrodden Nigerian people. Participation in peaceful protests should never be criminalised in Nigeria.
“It is pertinent to state that the threat of General Musa is illegal and unconstitutional since Nigeria is no longer under a military dictatorship. The threat cannot be justified under section 217 of the Constitution, which provides that the armed forces shall be empowered to suppress insurrection and act in aid of civil authorities, to restore order when called upon to do so by the President, but subject to such conditions as may be prescribed by an Act of the National Assembly.
“In Yusuf V. Obasanjo (2005) 18 NWLR (pt. 956) 96 at 174-175, the Court of Appeal held that: “It is up to the Police to protect our nascent democracy and not the Military, otherwise the democracy might be wittingly or unwittingly militarized. This is not what the citizenry bargained for, after wrestling power from the military in 1999. Conscious steps should be taken to civilianize the polity and thereby ensure survival and substance of democracy.”
“In the case APC v. PDP & Ors (2015) LPELR-24349(CA) the Court of Appeal held the armed forces can only suppress insurrection and act in aid of civil authorities to restore order when called upon to do so by the President, and even then, the military must be invited by the President, upon fulfilment of specified conditions, prescribed by an Act of the National Assembly. The Court further held that “even the President of Nigeria has no powers to call out the Armed Forces and unleash them (Military Officers) on a peaceful citizenry who are exercising their franchise to elect their leaders.”
“Similarly, in Femi Falana SAN v Chief of Army Staff, (FHC/L/CS/1939/2019), the plaintiff asked the Federal High Court to stop the Nigerian army from conducting “operation positive identification” exercise which entailed the demand of valid means of identification from Nigerians by military officials across the country. Justice Railwan Aikawa declared the exercise illegal and unconstitutional on the ground that members of the armed forces lack the power to subject civilians to any form of security check outside the North East geopolitical zone where the country is involved in waging a counter-insurgency operation.
“This is not the time for threats by military and civilian public officers. Having terminated the corrupt and murderous military dictatorship in Nigeria in May 1999, Nigerians will resist any violation of their hard- won democratic rights by armed gendarmes. Since the government has recognised the right of Nigerians to take part in protests, the police should be prohibited from resorting to the use of lethal weapons during peaceful protests.
“We congratulate the protesters for drawing the attention of the few politicians who are eating in Abuja to the plight of millions of Nigerians who are hungry. We demand the immediate and unconditional release of all protesters that were arrested and detained because they have not committed any criminal offence.
“We call on the President to address the demands of the peaceful protesters. So far, the Presidential Speech falls short of addressing the key demand, which is common to all the lists of demands of various organisations and protesters in the street: reversal of the policy of withdrawal of fuel subsidy. If the government takes the fight against corruption to oil dealers and crude oil is processed in government-owned refineries, there will be no basis for fuel subsidy, which is induced by the importation of petroleum products. A positive response to the key demands of the youths to review the protesters could make them review their actions. Insensitivity to their demands can only provoke continued action.
“Finally, we wish to draw the attention of the managers of the neocolonial state of Nigeria to the case of Inspector General of Police v All Nigeria Peoples Party (2008) 12 WRN 65 where the Court of Appeal held:
“A rally or placard-carrying demonstration has become a form of expression of views on current issues affecting government and the governed in a sovereign state. It is a trend recognised and deeply entrenched in the system of governance in civilised countries. It will not only be primitive but also retrogressive if Nigeria continues to require a pass to hold a rally. We must borrow a leaf from those who have trekked the rugged path of democracy and are now reaping the dividend of their experience.”
