There Is Nothing The Nigerian Government Says That Is Trustworthy – Aisha Yesufu

Popular Nigerian activist, Aisha Yesufu has come out to blast the recent clampdown on #EndSARS protesters.

She recently revealed that Nigerians should not be silent in the face of intimidation of young people by the government.

According to him, the recent arrests have shown how insincere the Nigerian government is, and the actions from our leaders keep proving that they do not care about the people.

He added that Nigeria currently has a government that lies and there is nothing this government says that is trustworthy.

Her words, “The arrests just showed how insincere Nigerian government is. Imagine the President’s countenance on camera when Lagos State governor presented the five-point demand to him. Protesters were killed before, during and after the protests, but there is no sincerity on the part of government. Their action says more. Many people still ask why the protesters remained on the streets when government said they had accepted their demands. But I need to remind them that the Nigerian government lies. There is nothing this government says that is trustworthy.”

“Instead of implementing the demands of #EndSARS, government is arresting and profiling them. They are going after them and seizing their passports. The accounts of many of them were blocked long before any court injunction. They went as far as going to their houses to pick them. Some were picked for just being in a WhatsApp group. This is the persecution that is going on.

The youths demanded in their presentation to the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, to have Governing Council because, without Governing Council, the legality of all these panels set up will be questioned. Of what use is it for people to go through pains of testifying, relieving their pains and the horror they went through in the hands of SARS and people are indicted but, at the end of the day, nothing would come out of it just because the legality of the panel is in question.

They also asked that those who have been indicted by the first panel to be prosecuted. There are police officers and SARS members who have been indicted but they have not been prosecuted. One of them allegedly tortured Hassan Alfa to death in 2014 in Kano. He has been promoted and he is in Abuja. There is a systemic abuse that the Nigerian government doesn’t want to address. Instead, government is actively supportive of the abuse. Today, we have seen what the Police meant when they tell you they will kill you and nothing will happen.

“I will waste you and nothing will happen,” is their common phrase. Indeed, nothing will happen because the people who came out and cried to their government are being killed under the cover of darkness. What happened? The absence of sincerity of purpose on the side of government was the reason youths decided to continue the protest in the face of attacks.”