The Presidency has accepted that Nigerians have the constitutional right to peaceful protest and no one can deny them this but is worried about protests being hijacked by hoodlums.
Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, who stated the Presidency’s position in an interview on TVC late Sunday night, said no one has the right to stop peaceful protest in the country, adding that it is the power of protest that brought the return of democracy to Nigeria.
He said: “There is nobody within our administration that has the standing, the command, or the gravitas to tell Nigerians that they cannot peacefully protest and that they cannot peacefully protest in any part of the country.
“We are not in office to dominate our people, we are in office to serve our people. And this is the position of the president.
“President Bola Tinubu has been very clear that the notion of peaceful protest is a central component of an effective function in democracy.
“Anyone who disagrees with the notion from inside the government, the notion that we are here to serve our people and not dominate them, they are lining up themselves against the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, who will defend the right of Nigerians to peaceful protest in any part of the country. And we want to be very unequivocal about that.”
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Ngelale noted that there were legitimate concerns that the protest might turn violent but stressed that was not enough to stop a peaceful protest.
He said the government would ensure those out to hijack the protest do not succeed.
The Federal Government has also said it taking steps to placate youths in the country to shave off the protest slated for Thursday, August 1, billed to last for 10 days
The declaration is coming at the backdrop of pro-government protests, organised by statement chairmen of All Progressives Congress, APC rocked state capitals across the country and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja.
However, the Inspector-General of Police, IGP, Kayode Egbetokun, on Monday summoned the legal adviser to the organisers of the protest, Mr Ebun Olu-Olu-Adegboruwa, SAN, to a meeting at Force Headquarters in Abuja today over the August 1, nationwide protest.
Adegboruwa had previously written to the IGP on July 26 seeking protection for members of the “Take-It-Back Movement,’ who are part of the civil society organizations taking part in the protest.
In response to Mr Adegboruwa’s request, the IGP through his Principal Staff Officer, CP Johnson Adenola, in a letter said, ‘’I am to inform you that the Inspector-General of Police has directed the Deputy Inspectors-General of Police (Operations and Intelligence), the Assistant Inspectors-General of Police in charge of Zonal Police Headquarters, and the Commissioners of Police in charge of State Commands across the country to attend to your request.
This came as no fewer than 36 civil society organisations in the country also reaffirmed the fundamental rights of citizens to peaceful protest as a fundamental pillar of democratic governance.
Meanwhile, one of the arrowheads of the planned protest and convener of Take-It-Back Movement, Damilare Adenola, has said that the Minister of Federal Capital Territory, FECT, Nyesom Wike, has no right to deny organisers of the protest use of Eagle Square in Abuja, it being a public facility.
The minister had at the weekend threatened to stop the use of the facility unless organisers of the protest, slated for Thursday, August 1, applied officially for it.
While Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, blamed the planned nationwide protest on politicians who lost the 2023 elections, alleging that they were intent on coming to power through the back door and appealed to organisers to ignore the protest, the Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, has directed all universities to make arrangements for the security and safety of staff, students and property.
The Nigerian Bar Association, in a statement, the outgoing President of the NBA, Mr Yakubu Maikyau, SAN, called on the Federal Government, organisers, proponents and supporters of the planned nationwide protest to call off the protest, and come together for a frank discussion on what must be done to immediately begin to turn around the plight of the people for good.
Nigerians are organising online nationwide protests this week in response to a cost of living crisis that has seen inflation rise to a 28-year-high of 34.2 per cent which followed President Bola Tinubu’s removal of fuel subsidies and a currency devaluation.
Religious clerics, traditional rulers and other prominent Nigerians have joined the government in discouraging young people from embarking on protests slated to begin on August 1, fearing Kenya-style protests will wreak havoc on the economy.
The government has sought more time to end hardships and both the police and army leadership have warned against the protests, saying they could get out of control.
‘’Protesting is a legitimate form of expression enshrined in international human rights instruments, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, UDHR, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution (as amended), among others.
‘’It allows citizens to publicly voice their concerns, challenge injustices, and participate actively in the democratic process.
‘’The organisers demand include reducing the cost of living, curbing insecurity, reducing the cost of governance, electoral reform, judicial reform, and constitutional reform, which are all recurring themes in Nigeria’s journey towards a healthy democracy.
