Human rights advocate and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has urged the government to cease the mobilization of youths to disrupt rallies and instead, interact with demonstrators articulating their grievances.
In an interview on Politics Today on Channels Television, Falana stressed the importance of the government authentically engaging with aggrieved citizens to cultivate a sense of inclusion.
He censured the utilization of traditional leaders and emergency organizations to counter protests.
Protesters nationwide, including in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), have taken to the streets to articulate their discontent regarding escalating poverty and the heightened cost of living, advocating for improved economic circumstances.
Falana also scrutinized the prompt acquisition of court orders by the Lagos and Ogun state administrations, as well as the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), which confine protesters to specified locations.
These orders, issued merely a day before the protests, likely did not allow sufficient time for proper notification of the demonstrators, resulting in their movement extending beyond the designated zones.
The specified locations comprise the Freedom and Peace Parks in Lagos, the MKO National Stadium in the FCT, and various sites within Ogun State.
