Welcome to today’s roundup of Nigerian newspaper headlines, accompanied by our advocacy-focused calls for government action on pressing issues that impact citizens.
1. The Guardian: #FreeNnamdiKanu: Chaos as Police Disperse Abuja Protesters, SouthEast Shuts Down for Kanu
We begin with The Guardian which reports that security operatives on Monday fired live bullets and teargas to disperse protesters in Abuja who were demanding the release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
At the same time, economic and social activities were paralysed across the South-East, as residents in Enugu, Ebonyi, Abia, Anambra and Imo states either stayed indoors or joined peaceful demonstrations calling for Kanu’s release.
Our Take: When did peaceful protest become a crime scene in a democracy? security enforcement agencies must remember their job is to protect citizens, not provoke them. Instead of turning every demonstration into a rehearsal for a war film, they should uphold citizens’ right to peaceful assembly, it is not a favour, it is the law.
2. Daily Trust: Address Nigerians on Alleged Coup Plot, ADC to Federal Government
Daily Trust reports that the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has cautioned the federal government against using the reports of an alleged coup plot as a pretext to clamp down on opposition leaders or subject dissenting voices to unlawful surveillance.
In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party said it views any threat to Nigeria’s democratic order with the utmost seriousness.
Our Take: President Tinubu, Nigerians deserve clarity, not coded whispers. If there truly is no coup in the works, then step forward and address the nation directly. The surest way to show transparency is by confronting rumours with truth. After all, sir, democracy doesn’t thrive in secrecy; it thrives when the leader speaks plainly enough for even the rumour mill to take a day off.
3. The Guardian: #EndSars: Police Reforms Linger as Nigerians Demand Justice Five Years Later
The Guardian reports that five years after #EndSARS protests shook Nigeria and called global attention to police brutality, stakeholders, including Global Rights and the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC) have condemned government’s inability to deliver on police reforms and justice for the victims, noting that since democracy thrives on trust and accountability, ‘the right to protest is not a privilege granted by the state; it is a democratic right that protects the state itself from tyranny’.
Our Take: Five years on, Nigerians are still waiting for the ‘reformed’ police that never quite made it past the announcement stage. President Tinubu should dust off those long-forgotten reform panels. The country does not need another committee; it needs accountability, empathy, and maybe, just maybe, a police force that knows the difference between enforcing the law and enforcing silence.
4. Vanguard: NLC Gives FG Four Weeks to Resolve Education Sector Crisis
Finally, the Vanguard reports that the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and its affiliate unions in the education sector have issued a four-week ultimatum to the federal government to resolve all lingering issues affecting the sector, warning that failure to do so would trigger a nationwide workers’ action.
Our Take: The Federal Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Labour and Employment, and indeed the Presidency need to wake up. They should take immediate steps to address the issues raised by the NLC and its affiliate unions because swift and sincere engagement is necessary to prevent another nationwide strike and ensure that the education sector remains stable and productive.
