Professor Kamilu Sani Fagge is a renowned political scientist at the Bayero University Kano, where he was once the Head of the Department of Political Science. Fagge, a regular contributor to political discourse on governance, democracy, rule of law and citizens rights, in this interview with Weekend Trust, advises government on what to do about the planned protest.
What do you think about the planned protest against hardship scheduled for October 1?
The planned October 1 protest is legitimate and legal because the constitution allows that, but it’s not necessary. In a democratic system where the government is supposed to act based on the wishes and will of the people, I don’t think the demonstration is necessary. By law, the government is supposed to act based on what the people want, so it’s only when this has not happened that protest is resorted to. So, protest by the citizenry is a last resort when everything else has failed.
Ideally, the government ought to respond to the wishes and yearnings of the citizens.
What can be done to ensure that it is peaceful this time?
There are many ways the government can ensure that the protest, if at all it takes place, is peaceful. One way is for the government to avoid use of force. It should not be like what happened during the last protest where it used the security agencies against the protesters, which degenerated into violence.
Secondly, the government should recognise the fact that protest is a legitimate right and so it should provide cover for the protesters to prevent it from being infiltrated by hoodlums who would make it violent. By the time the government protects and gives it legitimacy, it will be peaceful because hoodlums will not hijack it and create unnecessary violence.
What steps can government take to avert it?
One thing the government can do to avert the protest is to be responsive to the yearnings of the people. Like I said earlier, democracy is built on the wishes of the people. So, government and our leaders should recognise that fact and respond accordingly. For the October planned protest, the government can avert it. The surest way to ensure that protests do not take place is for the government to respond.
For example, the last one we had was prompted by government policies which led to unnecessary hardship caused by inflation, poverty, hunger and insecurity. Then, there is the issue of bad governance, corruption and other things. So, the government has what it takes to respond to these by making sure that it creates a very conducive atmosphere where people’s living standard are improved upon.
Government has to seriously look into the issues of subsidy, inflation, devaluation of the Naira and so on. If the government and leaders refuse to take into cognisance the fact that the living condition of the people has deteriorated or decide to ignore it and rather decide to use force on the protesters like it did during the August protest, it may temporarily halt the problem but it will not permanently settle or solve it.