Human Rights Activist, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, SAN has called for immediate suspension of the #EndBadGovernance protests across the country to give room for dialogue.
Adegboruwa, who made the appeal in a statement on Friday, said though the intention of the organizers was to achieve peaceful protests, it would seem that fifth columnists have infiltrated the ranks to derail their laudable mission.
He called on President, Bola Tinubu to directly address the nation and then engage the protesters, through their representatives, noting that with the level of hunger and hardship being experienced by Nigerians, the protests were more than justified.
Part of his statement read,
The mass protests declared against hunger and bad governance entered its second day today August 2, 2024.
Though the intention of the organizers 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 hereby express my 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.
I therefore call upon President Bola Tinubu to directly address the nation and then engage the protesters, through their representatives. Thereafter, the government should set up a Committee comprising men and women of integrity to meet with the protesters to address the issues that they have raised.
I appeal to the protesters to withdraw themselves from their various protest grounds and to suspend the protests immediately and indefinitely, in order 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 organizers of the protests and their representatives should embrace dialogue with the government.
I commend the people of Nigeria who trooped out in their large numbers to join the protests and those who stayed at home in solidarity by way of peaceful civil disobedience.
No leader should ever take the people for granted. In the peculiar circumstance of the hunger and hardship being experienced by our people across the land, the protests were more than justified.
