The Lagos State governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu has been advised to embark on ‘walk for justice and truth’ because there cannot be peace without justice, reports ITREALMS.
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| Dr. Winjobi, Principal Coordinator |
The Principal Coordinator, CAFSO-WRAG for Development, Dr. Tola Winjobi made this call at a press conference in commemoration of the International Human Rights Day on Friday in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, said they are worried that the Federal Government has not been responsive to shrinking civic space.
“Government has not been responsive,” he lamented, and called for deepening national awareness campaign in reversing this trend of shrinking space for the civil society.
CAFSO-WRAG described as unsatisfactory the earlier planned recent peace walk by the Lagos State governor.
This, they said, ought to have been a walk for justice znd truth, stressing there would be no peace without rredressing the injustice that the victims and their loved ones suffered as a result of the EndSARS protest of 2020.
“We are also concerned about the spate of kidnappings across the country especially as it decimates our students and teachers beginning from Chibok girls, Dapchi girls, Jengebe girls, Chikankara boys, to Afaka students and recently Bethel Students in Kaduna,” Dr Winjobi said.
As a consequence, he pointed out that this spate of students and teachers kidnap, community and parental trust in the education system is shrinking significantly, and access to quality and equitable education is becoming a mirage as some abductees often get killed, some recruited to the insurgency while some girls are put in family way and thus cannot continue with their education.
Harping on the objectives of Human Rights Day, Winjobi said, it would create more awareness on the shrinking civic space so as for government to reverse the trend, which is expected to open up the civic space in 12 states across the country.
CAFSO-WRAG, he said plans to present before government documentary evidence on trends of shrinking and closed civic space so as to stem the tide of denial by government.
The group accused the government of the day of systemic repressive and oppressive actions against the civil society.
Some of these actions, the group said, required mandatory registration with difficult requirements for CSO operations; regulatory restrictions and nebulous legislation including hate speech attracting N50 million penalty or death penalty; measures banning public demonstrations and processions except for the Nigerian state; poor and limited spaces available for CSO participation and lack of technical and financial support for CSOs’ effective engagement and operations coupled with donor’s fatigue.
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