Nine Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) and 32 other eminent Nigerians have suggested ways President Muhammadu Buhari can calm the frayed nerves of the #EndSARS protesters across the country.
In a statement titled: Our youth and the unfolding national crisis: need for urgent intervention, they offered a seven-point action plan to stem the tide of violence and restore trust in government.
Besides that, they said there appeared to be evidence suggesting that government agents or affiliated political actors disrupted the #EndSARS protests by sponsoring violence.
The concerned professionals said the thugs seemed to have attacked protesters and damaged properties but tried to pin the violence on legitimate protesters.
They also raised the alarm that the situation was getting “very dangerous” because there also appeared to be attempts to “divide and rule the youth” through ethnic and religious manipulation.
They further described the October 20 Lekki shootings as “a premeditated violent crackdown”, adding that the attack on “unarmed protesters holding the nation’s flag and singing the national anthem will go down in infamy and will be engraved in the minds of Nigerians as one of the worst abuses of its own citizenship.”
To stem the tide of violence and restore trust in government, they gave President Muhammadu Buhari a seven-point action list.
Those who signed the statement are: Dr. Olisa Agbakoba OON, SAN; Prof. Jibrin Ibrahim; Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah; Prof. Attahiru Muhammadu Jega; Funke Adekoya, SAN; Prof. Joy Ngozi Ezeilo; Mr. Femi Falana SAN; Rev Prof. Koyinsola Ajayi SAN; Prof. Auwalu H. Yadudu and Mal. Yusuf Ali SAN; Dr. Chris Kwaja; Mr. Chino Edmund Obiagwu SAN; Father George Ehusani; Mr. John Odah and Prof. Mohammed Tabiu, SAN.
They also include Mal. Kabiru Yusuf; Cmrd. Salisu Nuhu Mohammed; Mr. Ledum Mitee; Ms Ngozi Iwere; Ene Obi; Ms Amina Salisu; Dr. Hakeem Baba Ahmed; Dayo Olayide; Danlami Nmodu; Mallam Hamza Ibrahim; Prof. Ukachukwu A. Awuzie and Dr, Peter Ozo-Eson.
Others are Dr. Dipo Fashina; Dr. Udo Jude; Ms Idayat Hassan; Abubakar Sokoto Mohammed; Prpf. G.G. Darah; Prof. Adele Jinadu; Prof. Rufai Alkali; Hon. Rima Shawulu; Dr. Innocent Chukwuma; Dr. Kole Shettima; Adeyemi Candide-Johnson SAN; Mal. Y.Z. Yau; Prof. Pat Utomi and A. B. Mahmoud, OON, SAN.
According to them, the developments of the last weeks present one of the country’s most serious crises.
They attributed the protests – which they described as peaceful, and disciplined – to “bad governance and lack of accountability.”
The statement said: “There are widespread allegations and some available evidence would appear to support this, that agents of government or other affiliated political actors sought to break the legitimate protests by the youth through sponsoring or promoting thugs to attack the protestors and damage properties which were then attributed to the youth protestors.
“Some evidence also suggests that there are attempts to delegitimise the protests by seeking to divide and rule the youth through ethnic and religious manipulation.
“This makes the situation very dangerous for the country. This divisive and cynical approach, if established, portends great danger to the nation and is unacceptable.”
They urged Buhari to take immediate urgent steps to “address the widening trust deficit between the Government and the President on the one hand, and the Nigerian youth and its people on the other.”
According to them, one way of moving forward, is for the President to take decisive action to close the trust deficit and do seven things.
They are: “Identifying and arresting immediately the persons that gave instruction for soldiers to shoot protesting youth at the Lekki Toll Gate on 20th October 2020.
“Institute an urgent independent inquiry on: (i) the events at Lekki toll gate leading to the use of live ammunitions on the protestors and (ii) the apparent use of sponsored thugs or hoodlums by security operatives to infiltrate and break the peaceful protests. All those identified to be responsible for this must be held to account and prosecuted.
“Take immediate remedial action as spelt out in the youth Charter of Demands (which they term 5For5 Demands) including the immediate release of all arrested protestors, justice and compensation for the families of victims, and an independent body to oversee the prosecution of guilty officers.
“Address the Nation with concrete plan of implementation of the modalities and timelines for police reform.
“Respond positively to the consensus opinion that the heads of the security agencies have performed poorly and should be relieved of office.
“Announce urgent steps to address perennial insecurity and killings in the country particularly in the North-East and North-West.
“Finally, develop a clear workplan for the implementation of the governance reform programmes for which well meaning Nigerians have been demanding.”
They further commended the youths for their patriotism and urged them to be law-abiding during the protests.