As Nigeria commemorates its 64th independence anniversary, on October 1st, 2024, some Nigerians took to the streets of Lagos to protest against the prevalent economic hardship, high cost of living, and hunger in the country. The protest which was tagged #FearlessOctober, was a continuation of the #EndbadGovernance protest which took place for ten days in
As Nigeria commemorates its 64th independence anniversary, on October 1st, 2024, some Nigerians took to the streets of Lagos to protest against the prevalent economic hardship, high cost of living, and hunger in the country.
The protest which was tagged #FearlessOctober, was a continuation of the #EndbadGovernance protest which took place for ten days in August 2024 when Nigerians in the major state capitals in the country demanded the reversal of policies that led to economic hardship in the country.
The August protest however ended with violence in some parts of the country, leading to the arrest and arraignment of some of the protesters. Despite the August experience, organisers of the protest insisted on the continuation of the protests citing the failure of the federal government to accede to any of their demands as the reason for the demonstration.
The Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun ordered water-tight security nationwide to safeguard the country ahead of the demonstration, the organisers nevertheless in a press statement released on Monday said the protests would continue as planned.
The protesters gathered at Ikeja under the bridge today at around 7:00 am with banners and placards with different inscriptions bearing messages such as ‘Enough is Enough’, ‘Cost of Living Don Finish the Living’, ‘End Corruption, Bad Governance’ and ‘Fix Nigeria’, ‘reverse high electricity tariff’, among others.
Alongside the banners and placards, the organisers presented their cardinal demands, some of which included a reduction of food prices and an end to hunger, an end to insecurity, banditry, terrorism, and violent crimes.
They also called for the release of all protesters and journalists arrested and detained during the EndSars and EndbadGovernance protest, implementation of N70,000 minimum wage at all levels, reduction of cost of governance for all political office holders, genuine electoral Reforms amongst others.
Taking their demands from Ikeja to Ojota, where the protest ended, there was a heavy presence of security agencies including the police and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps. The presence of the protesters also led to traffic delays as motorists were forced to hold on to their movements in some major parts of Lagos city.
Speaking with journalists, Hassan Taiwo Soweto, one of the organisers of the demonstration said the movement was to reiterate their demands to the government to reverse all the policies that put Nigerians in hardship and hunger.
He condemned the government’s appeal to Nigerians to be patient while the political elites are living large in the country. “It is no news that many Nigerians are living in abject poverty and pain, yet they are saying we should be patient. Some of our protesters in August were arrested and up till this moment, they are still in detention, the government must release them, he said.
A protester who introduced himself as Wasiu Ado said he joined the protest and claimed his inability to afford the financial resources to take off his children made him beg the government to “As you are looking at me, I don’t have money to take care of my children, they have resolved to sell pure water on the streets, I have my job but there is no money to sustain it. I want the government to bring the cost of Petrol down and help us so that we will be able to take our responsibilities.”
Another protester who identified herself as Aina Agbeyangi, a single mother of two said her alcohol-selling business can no longer sustain her business since the removal of fuel subsidy as the cost of goods has increased exponentially. She added that she can no longer pay for her children’s school fees “I am now in debt. Please have mercy on us. I don’t want to go into prostitution. I don’t want to be a bad role model for my children. “I haven’t bought my children’s textbooks for this session. This is getting too much. It wasn’t even like this during the Endsars”, she lamented.
Speaking with the media, the presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) and the convener of the Take it Back movement, Omoyele Sowore, who marched with the protesters condemned the Tinubu-led administration for making life miserable for Nigerians.
He called Nigerians to rise to struggle for their independence from the greedy politicians “Those who have made life miserable for our people deliberately, the looters, the corrupt cabals, both in the oil sector or whatever sector they may be.
“Our independence starts now, because the independence we got in 1960, they struggled for it, we are struggling for a new independence and it is part of the continuation of what we started in 2019 with Revolution Now because we believe that only revolution can save this country,” he said when quizzed by newsmen the reasons for the protest.
“We are asking the Federal Government to release every detained protester whether in Kaduna, Abuja, Katsina, or Kano. The Federal Government should release them today”, he said.
