Femi Falana, a human rights lawyer, and his son, Folarin Falana, popularly known as Falz, joined other Nigerians in the streets of Lagos to protest the country’s escalating insecurity and poverty.
Protesters marched from Ikeja Bus Stop to the Governor’s Office, passing through the Secretariat on their way to the Lagos State House of Assembly, chanting protest songs.
The Nigeria Labour Congress and its affiliates, the Alliance On Surviving COVID 19 And Beyond; Joint Action Front; Coalition Of Northern Groups; Green Alliance Nigeria; CONGOS – Edo; North East Development Association and their respective affiliations are among the groups that make up the movement.
Youths carried postcard with messages such as “No to Exploitation and Multiple Taxation,” “Provide Jobs or Unemployment Benefits for Youths,” “Provide Security in Schools,” “End Kidnapping and Banditry,” and “Stop Killings, Secure Nigeria” throughout the demonstration, which lasted several hours.
Jaye Gaskiya, a prominent activist, led the demonstrators, which included trade unions, civic society, students, farmers, and peasants.
The protest, according to Gaskiya, was organized to express dissatisfaction with how poorly the country has degenerated.
He expressed concern that Nigeria, which is marked by extreme poverty, arms proliferation, religious intolerance, the rise of hate, and ethnic nationalism, is heading for social upheavals as a result of people exploitation, greed, and avarice on the part of a spineless political class that has reached its breaking point.
A declaration by the movement captured seven major demands including the Nigerian Police Council’s immediate convocation to discuss security challenges and an end to the arbitrary sacking of workers.
It stated, “We reject any plans to further hike energy costs – in the price of fuel and electricity tariff; as these costs are not only already at unbearable levels, but also because these price hikes are the major cause of rising and unbearable costs of living, expressed in rising inflation.”
