Mike Ejiofor, a former Director of the Department of State Services (DSS), shed light on why the 2012 anti-subsidy removal protest in Nigeria remained peaceful during his appearance on Arise TV’s Morning Show on Friday.
Ejiofor attributed the non-violent nature of the 2012 protest to the “body language” of then-President Goodluck Jonathan. According to Ejiofor, Jonathan’s approach allowed the protests to proceed without escalation. He noted that the overall situation in the country was less dire compared to the present.
“The 2012 protest didn’t turn violent, one, because of the body language of the sitting president then. He allowed everything to go and the situation was not as bad as what we have now. Now, it can be exploited because people are hungry, desperate, and want to use anything to vent their anger,” Ejiofor explained.
Ejiofor emphasized the constitutional right to protest but expressed concern that current conditions could lead to violence. He praised the organizers of the planned protests for giving the government ample notice, allowing various stakeholders to appeal for the protests to be shelved to prevent potential violence.
“No matter how good their intentions are, I believe this will be hijacked eventually,” Ejiofor warned. “Looking at their demands, we will all agree that there is economic hardship in the country, there is hunger and anger in the land, but again people who are more hungry now will explore the opportunity to loot people’s shops and it will eventually turn violent. That’s why we will continue to appeal to organizers to shelve the plans and give the government time to look at it.”
While affirming the right to peaceful protest, Ejiofor stressed the government’s responsibility to protect the state and innocent citizens if protests turn violent. He also highlighted the importance of communication, suggesting that the president should address the nation to ease tensions.
“The ordinary man in the street needs also to know what is happening because some people do not even have electricity to look at the nation to know what is going on. I think the president needs to directly speak to the people, maybe make a national broadcast, this will help in relaxing the situation,” Ejiofor concluded.
