Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has called on the government to stop mobilizing youths to disrupt rallies and instead engage with demonstrators expressing their grievances.
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Falana made this statement during an interview on Channels Television’s “Politics Today” on Thursday evening.
He emphasized the need for government officials to identify and engage with those genuinely aggrieved by the current economic conditions in Nigeria, marked by rising poverty and the high cost of living.
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“We must also learn to stop mobilising people to disrupt rallies, we must stop mobilising traditional rulers and some emergency organisations to say, ‘we are pulling out of the protests,’” Falana said.
“The government must now begin to identify those who are genuinely aggrieved and then begin to engage them, ‘what are your complaints?’ So that people will have a sense of belonging.”
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Falana also criticized the Lagos and Ogun state governments, as well as the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), for swiftly obtaining court orders that restrict protesters to designated areas.
“These orders limit demonstrations to specific locations such as Freedom and Peace Parks in Lagos, the MKO National Stadium in the FCT, and several sites in Ogun State.”
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Falana argued that the court orders were obtained just 24 hours before the protest started, likely leaving insufficient time to properly notify the demonstrators.
“I think the government should have learnt not to rush to court on the eve of a strike action by workers, or the eve of a protest by young people because the difficulty with such orders is that they are never served on those they are made to restrain,” he explained.
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“For instance, the order in Lagos was not served on anybody, the orders in Ogun State were not served on anybody, the order in Abuja, I think one of the defendants is said to be ‘unknown persons.’ Now, how do you serve court orders on unknown persons?”
Falana suggested that the government could designate protest venues well in advance, noting that it had over two weeks’ notice of the protest. This would allow sufficient time to inform protesters of any restrictions without needing a court order.”
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“In Lagos, largely today, from my information, people came from as far as about 30–40 km away to participate in the protest in Ojota. Again, that is the venue that was being used for protest before the government sealed it off.”
“Ditto for Abuja, protesters were using an enclosure, the Unity Fountain; it is a stone’s throw from Transcorp Hilton Hotel. The government in Abuja, the FCT Administration, sealed it off. So, people then went to the street.”
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“If the government is now coming back to say in every state capital, we want to designate a venue, a protest ground, as is done in many countries of the world, again, I think that is a lesson to learn.
“But don’t rush to court when you have at least two weeks’ notice of an impending protest. Don’t rush to court on the eve of that protest because even if the court makes that order, it’s not going to be served on people practically.”
