Coordinators of the 'End hunger' protest in Lagos have said they will unite at the Gani Fawehinmi Opportunity Park, Ojota, on Monday, to proceed with their exhibit.This is as per a Sunday proclamation endorsed by Hassan Taiwo, Ayoyinka Oni and Adegboyega Adeniji, for the #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria Sorting out Panel, Gani Fawehinmi Park, Ojota, Lagos State.
They said they had tuned in with laser focus to President Bola Tinubu's transmission on Sunday and "think of it as rather appalling" that it took President Tinubu three days of dissent to address the country.
Tinubu confirmed in the nationwide broadcast on Sunday morning that his organization was prepared to pay attention to and address the worries of dissidents, certifying that he had heard their calls "plainly."
“I hereby enjoin protesters and the organisers to suspend any further protest and create room for dialogue, which I have always acceded to at the slightest opportunity,” the president said.
The organisers noted that they consider the decision to address the nation an “important victory for our movement.”
“Without our courage and resolve to dare the odds, even this acknowledgement would not have happened. So far, we have demonstrated that a President is not greater than the rest of the country,” the statement read.
While taking note of Tinubu’s offer of dialogue, they noted that they were concerned that in the same breadth, the President had also ordered that the protest be suspended.
“In our view, the president cannot be approbating and reprobating at the same time. The President cannot offer an olive branch while at the same time holding a dagger to our throat,” the trio said.
The statement condemned the scenario “where thugs attacked protesters who had gathered for Sunday morning worship thereby injuring many.”
It added, “So we therefore call on all Nigerian youth and mass of the people to join us by 7 am at Gani Fawehinmi Park, Ojota, Lagos tomorrow (Monday) August 5, 2024, which is Day 5 of the protest.”
The Lagos protest had been considered peaceful by the state government, but a video on Sunday captured by Channels TV showed protesters being chased by hoodlums wielding sticks at Ojota a few hours after the President’s address.
A video also trended over the weekend showing the moment a protester addressing a journalist was hit in the head by a hoodlum during a live interview on the protest grounds.
The organisers also called the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress, the media, and the Nigerian Bar Association not to watch with arms folded what they described as attempts “to chase us out of the streets instead of addressing our demands.”
Comments