Stakeholders urge revolution to move Nigeria forward

Takeholders across several divides have urged Nigerians to declare protests against the current challenges in the country.

They spoke yesterday at a symposium tagged “Nigeria: which way forward?”

It was organised by Magodo Associates at the Afe Babalola Auditorium at the University of Lagos.

Among those who made the declaration yesterday were a former chieftain of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) Dr. Amos Akingba and a Public Affairs Analyst, Prof. Femi Otubanjo.

Others are a former Chairman of the Nigerian chapter of Transparency International, Major Gen. Ishola Williams, and Professor of International Law and Jurisprudence, Akin Oyebode.

Otubanjo said Nigerians are tired of symposia, seminars, lectures and the likes, adding that they had not yielded any fruits.

He urged communities to assemble and protest for their freedom in this failing country.

He said: “There is nothing said here today that we have not heard before, what has been the outcome of all these meetings, seminars, lectures, nothing.

“We need to move from oganising things like this, to gathering people to protest, because no protest has ever failed to achieve its purpose.”

Oyebode said: “The country is moving into civil war, but because we are in the comfort zone, many of us are not yet aware.

“Nigeria salvation does not rely on the National Assembly, neither does it lie on Aso rock. But it is on the people of Nigeria; when they are tired and cannot take it anymore, they would fight back,” he said.

He added that the subjective condition includes the existence of the conscious party that can decide when to strike.

“I studied Maxism as a young man and the contradiction are unfolding before our very eyes,” he said.

On his part, Akingba said: “When the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) were doing their agitation, they didn’t cause any problem, but they set up the military against them.

“We still don’t know where they have kept its leader Nnamdi Kanu, and nobody cares anymore. But when they killed people in the Middle Belt, the military didn’t go there, but even supported them.”