“Stop the Wicked Prosecution of #EndBadGovernance Minors; No Ruler Has Ever Won Against Their People,” Ezekwesili Tells Tinubu

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Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, a former Minister of Solid Minerals, has called on President Bola Tinubu’s administration to immediately cease the “wicked prosecution” of minors involved in the #EndBadGovernance protests and return them to their parents and guardians.

Ezekwesili, an Economic and Public Policy Expert and Senior Economic Adviser to the Africa Economic Development Policy Initiative, also demanded compensation for the minors who have been detained for several months. She warned President Tinubu that “no ruler has ever won against their people.”

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Reacting to the arraignment of minors who have been held for about three months for exercising their constitutional right to protest, she described Nigerian leaders as cruel.

“When those children came out to protest, asking you to #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria, they were telling you the ‘Truth and nothing but the Truth,’” she stated, emphasizing that denial of problems cannot lead to their resolution.

In a message directed at President Tinubu on her X handle, she remarked, “Here is the sordid evidence of the @NigeriaGov punishing your citizens for daring to tell you the truth of #BadGovernance by your administration. No one can ever solve a Problem they deny and refuse to own. No one.”

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Ezekwesili questioned the government’s legal approach, asking how many citizens it could possibly detain.

“How many of your Citizens can you detain and deprive of their freedoms like done to these minors? Hear me. No ruler has ever won against their people forever. Check history. Note that I wrote ruler and not leader.”

She criticized Nigerian politicians, stating, “The repressive class of politicians in Nigeria are not leaders. You all have serially failed the ‘test of leadership’ because you act as wicked rulers who feel entitled to the ‘publicly-funded luxurious life’ while repressing and pauperizing the citizens.”

Ezekwesili further noted, “The evident corrupted capture of our Judiciary by the @NigeriaGov is playing out daily on Candid Camera before the eyes of the world. The trial of these minors is one of many examples these days. Stop the wicked prosecution of these minors immediately and send the children back to their parents and guardians.”

She also insisted on compensating the minors for the “physical, mental, emotional and overall psychological damage” they suffered due to the state’s abuse of power and violation of their constitutional rights.

“I hope you start listening to what the majority of your Citizens, especially these children, are telling you daily: ‘Ebi npawa’, ‘we are hungry.’ Nothing lasts forever. Today is not Forever,” she concluded.