Ibrahim Ahmed Katsina is a former Director of the Department of State Security, DSS.
In this interview, Katsina says the promoters of the proposed August 1 protest are faceless and should not be feared.
What is your take on the impending nationwide protest?
The first thing that comes to mind, based on my experience as security person, is that of mob action. It is not a protest. Protests are organised by people that are known and based on certain criteria and concern. For this protest, the sponsors are not known; they are just employing the social media to strategically convey their message which has gained attention. So, let people understand it, it is not a protest, it is a mob action.
Why did you say it is a mob action?
Because it is has no structured leadership. Who do you talk to? Is it Tiltok, WhatsApp or Facebook you are going to talk to? Protests should be organised by people who are known. There is difference between mob action and protest. For protest, you know who to talk to, you know their demands. This is a mob action which is against security of any nation.
What are the security implications of the so-called mob action?
The implications are enormous. There is no sane government that would allow people to hijack the psyche of the average people to cause mayhem. If there are concerns, there are ways to convey such concerns and allow those responsible to take action, but this is totally different and security implications are enormous in terms of individuals, in terms of the economy.
Again, do you know the intention of the organizers or participants of the protests? Do you know their plan? People can use the opportunity of the protest to do a lot of things, and that is why there are concerns here and there.
But that is the beauty of democracy so that such concerns can be addressed by your representatives so that they, in turn, voice them out to the relevant authorities for them to take action. There are processes in constitutional democracy.
Not that somebody just wakes up one morning and say "let us go on the streets to protest". Who are you to do that without being identified? That is the essence of governance. Let the identities of the organisers be known, by name, by locations and every identity that can make negotiations easier.
We have seen where such mob actions have taken place like Libya, Tunisia, Somalia, Sudan and recently in Kenya. The organisers of that of Kenya have now realised that the damage done to the country, the economy and socio economic activities is more than the gain of the protests. We need to know the dynamics of struggle for power. People can do a lot of things under cover to get power. I think the government must know this dynamics that there is more to it than meets the eye.
What should an average Nigerian not participating in the protests be doing at this time and during the protest?
My advice is nobody should panic. When you panic, it creates fear. When fear sets in, you will be conquered easily. People should be courageous to resist any temptation of any threat. There is no reason for people to panic at all.
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They should be calm and calculative. The evil forces cannot be more than the good ones. It is psychological warfare they are waging so that it can put fear into the people. We should not succumb to such pressure. Let us also be organised.
There are more mature ways to convey your grievances and since the government has responded by saying they are feeling the pains and they are addressing the issues. What an average Nigerian should do I guess is to encourage them to do more.
Let us be sincere with each other, if the country collapses, everybody, including the organises will be affected because nobody can take cover again.
My advice is for everybody to be calm, and not panic. When you panic, you become a victim, and when you become a victim, nobody can determine what happens next.
