Nigeria: Falana Urges Democrats to Prevent Nigeria From Failing

24 November 2014

Human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), has called on democratic forces who fought against prolonged military rule in Nigeria to salvage the democratic process in the country and prevent Nigeria from becoming a failed state. Falana, who made the call yesterday against's the background of last week fracas between the Speaker of the House of Representatives and men of the Nigerian police, said recent events in the country is giving Nigeria the outlook of a failed state.

"In spite of the threat of terrorist and other nihilist groups to balkanise the country, I strongly believe that the rickety democratic process can still be salvaged by all the genuine democratic forces who led the Nigerian people to fight against unending military rule and who equally defeated the cabal that attempted to take advantage of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua's ill-health to seize power from the then acting President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan. As time is not on our side, the forces of democracy ought to return to the trenches now to halt the implosion of fascism on the nation by the Jonathan administration," he said. According to him, "As security forces were used last week to disrupt the proceedings of the National Assembly, President Jonathan was prevented by a former militant, Mr. Government Tompolo, from attending the flag-off ceremony of the $16 billion EPZ project in Warri, Delta State. Like the terrorists who have prevented the president from visiting Chibok, the militants declared him a persona non grata and forced him to stay away from Warri. "As if that was not enough, the journalists who had assembled at the venue to report the event were abducted by a horde of armed goons. Even though the reporters regained their freedom after six hours of horrific physical and mental torture, those who committed the grave criminal offences of kidnapping and threatening to overawe the President of the Republic have not been arrested by the Nigeria Police Force! "Thus, through sheer negligence and official impunity on the part of the federal government, the country has become a failed state where security forces are competing with criminal gangs in the wanton infringements of the civil liberties of law abiding citizens. Like the terrorists who attack communities while ill-equipped soldiers vamoose, armed thugs are allowed to threaten the life of the President of the Republic without any reaction from the police.

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