I am writing this letter to President Bola Tinubu following the aftermath of the national protest which started on August 1 and was rounded up with a one million-man march across the country on the 10th of August,2024. It is very essential to state that the the right to protest in a democracy is legal and citizens must be accorded their constitutional right to express their grievances. The protest tagged #EndBadGovernance in Nigeria is a strategic move by Nigerians to tell you that if Nigeria continues to spend extravagantly on a few politicians at the expense of millions of Nigerians suffering as a result of tough economic polices of your administration, the country will sink deeper into quicksand. In response to the protest should be dialogue and not the use of security agencies to arrest, beat, teargas and even in many recorded instances, injure and kill protesters just for excercising their rights.
Through protests, citizens uses such opportunity to voice their opinions and express their grievances in order to achieve better result. In Bangladesh, Citizens protested and their prime minister resigned following call for her resignation. In UK currently, citizens are protesting against immigrants and through that action, some looting and violence were recorded,although violence and destruction of property both private and government owned is not encouraged. Here in Nigeria, people can’t be crucified or victimized for protesting, a good government will rather find a way to appeal to people and not to force it on them not to protest.
Dear president Tinubu, protests serve as a powerful check on government power. They remind elected officials and public servants that they are accountable to the people. In a country where corruption and abuse of power are persistent challenges, protests can enforce good governance. What happens during protests in Nigeria is that government insincerity has led to allegations that some unscrupulous government officials are recruiting thugs to join the protest in order to make it violent so as to give law enforcement agencies the excuse to crack down violently on protesters… In South western part of Nigeria, protest held and there was no looting, ditto for Plateau, Abuja and a number of other places. But in North, it was the other way round, there was massive looting and infrastructural damage which is seen as a reflection of the illiteracy and rampart poverty in that zone. If you don’t give people education, expect a high level of destrruction.
The 1999 Constitution, under Section 40, guarantees every citizen the right to assemble freely and associate with others. Despite constitutional guarantees, the right to protest in Nigeria faces significant challenges due to what many see as the givernment’s selfish ambition to rule without putting into consideration the plight of the people. The excessive use of force by security agencies, arbitrary arrests, and the stigmatisation of protesters are alarmingly frequent. These actions not only undermine the essence of democratic expression but also instil fear and discourage civic participation. Governance in this digital age, the show of force shows weakness.
The reason for the #EndbadGovernance protest in Nigeria is to speak out against high level of hardship facing Nigerians. Only the priviledged are keeping quiet. As at the commencement of protest, Nigerians still earn 30,000 minimum wage. Although, you t have approved and signed N70,000 as minimum wage but none has received it yet. In addition, what can 70,000 naira do in this economy where a bag of rice is sold for N90,000? Accomodation, fuel and groceries are on a high side. Prices changes hour-to hour and the significant effect of this is that the country is towing a wrong part. To stem the protest grievances, Your excellency addressed Nigerians, but your address did not satisfy the yearnings of the people, instead of addressing their demands, you just announced what your government had done, many of which the people have yet to fully benefit from, because if they did, there wouldn’t have been a need to protest in the first instance.
However, it is pertinent to note the unreasonably high cost of governance in Nigeria and you, as the president must make moves to cut it drastically as the poor citizen cannot continue to bear the pains alone. Some people cannot be living large at the expense of others, it cannot work. The renewed hope is now becoming the renewed shege. Or how can we justify buying of fuel at 850 naira per litre? I have been buying this with a heavy heart.
Thus, my advice to the President is that you need to pend arbitrary taxation that your administration has introduced. You cannot tax a thin economy. Also, you sir should prosecute those who had embezzled and mismanages the subsidy fund. Not only at that, your government should also, has a matter of urgency opened the borders as a temporary strategy to ameliorate the suffering of the people and not a few privledged smugglers who has been feeding fat on the tears of Nigerians. On the lawmakers pay, this must be reviewed on advise, if not, Nigerians might stil see the need to occupy the street again. Also, there is the need to review or change 1999 constitution, it can no longer stand the test of time and lastly, restructuring of this country is very paramount.
Finally, your excellency, only a vibrant civil society will experience true development to complement its democracy. In this respect, you should use your office to order the release of all protesters without delay. People’s grievances has been heard as you have right said in your nationwide address, since hat is the case, nobody should be punished for exercising his or her right.
To me, if your excellency can address the aforementioned matters, Nigeria will have a feel of a fresh breath of air and we can all smile again. Nobody loves Nigeria more than the other, we all want the country to work, it is your duty and responsibility as president and commander in chief of the armed forces of Nigeria to ensure this is done for the benefit of all Nigerians.
Written by Tosin Adesile