Protest: Reasons Why FG should reconsider some economic policies – Adegboruwa
A human rights activist Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN), has urged the Federal Government to reconsider some of its economic policies to reduce the pain and hunger of Nigerians.
The senior lawyer stated that there could be further protests in the future if hunger and pain continue.
“Now the protests are over and the question is: what next? Let the government set up a committee of eminent persons across the nation to examine the issues. Are people suffering? Yes. Are the policies of the government helping to reduce the pains and pangs of hunger and poverty? No. Will there be further protests if the hunger and pains continue? Yes,” Adegboruwa said.
“This requires no rocket science to figure out. As far as the Constitution stipulates that the primary purpose of any government shall be security and welfare of the people, any economic policy that impoverishes the people should be re-examined.”
Reflecting on the ten-day #EndBadGovernance protests, Adegboruwa suggested that the protesters could learn from the Nigerian Labour Congress and the Academic Staff Union of Universities. He highlighted that these groups have effective leadership and coordination that helps prevent infiltration by those with different agendas.
He said, “First is to always agree on and communicate the OBJECTIVE of the protest, in this case to end hunger, poverty and reversal of some of the economic policies of the government, especially fuel subsidy removal and devaluation of the Naira. This is because such struggle will surely involve short, medium and long term goals, since in this case, the protests were to last ten days, meaning that some of the objectives may not be attainable within the period of the protests.”
Adegboruwa, however, criticized the statement by one of the organizers that only a “hungry lawyer” should represent them.
He said, “I was therefore shocked when my attention was drawn to an interview on national television by one of the organizers of the protests that they can only be represented by a hungry lawyer. We used to call this ‘infantile radicalism’, in those days in school, when young Comrades with little or no experience worked to undo themselves.
“The logic of the young man was that as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, I could not be hungry enough to feel the pangs of the protesters. So, the Take It Back Movement did not know of my status before I was engaged to facilitate protection for them and to dialogue with the police? What has hunger and status got to do with the struggle? Obafemi Awolowo, Alfred Rewane, Beko Ransome-Kuti, Ndubuisi Kanu, Balarabe Musa, etc, were not poor by any standards, yet they offered themselves at critical times in our nation to fight for the people.”
The senior lawyer also urged the government to enhance its intelligence and response systems. He pointed out that the failure to monitor and address potential violence, as seen in Kano, underscores the need for proactive measures.
He stated that the government’s use of force or restrictive measures in handling protests can alienate citizens and backfire. Instead, constructive engagement, like that attempted by some governors, could help foster better relations and more effectively address grievances.
