Many people have taken to social media to call Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu unprintable names over the shooting at the venue of the #Endsars protest at the Lekki Toll Gate Plaza on the night of Tuesday, October 20, 2020. These group of critiques may be overwhelmed by emotions while making the aggrieved comments, but then, excessive emotions blind the senses from facts and truth. While some things had spin out of control during the end SARS protest by the Nigerian youths, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has been in the midst of the crisis and no one is considering his earnest efforts.
In the wake of the youth protest in the first week of October 2020, Governor Sanwo-Olu had faced his Lagos youths like the iconic civil leader he is by going out to meet them at the protest ground. He showed empathy and concern for the youths’ agitations, listened to their complaints and made provision for their safety. In the midst of the heat of the protest, Governor Sanwo-Olu was the first Nigerian Governor who met face-to-face with the angry youths and dialogued with them in Lagos.
When other State Governors were threatening and others turning deaf ears to the youths’ demand for the disband of the dreaded police anti-robbery unit popularly known as SARS, Sanwo-Olu thought and felt otherwise. His response showed that he is a true democrat and a contemporary leader.
Babajide Sanwo-Olu addressed the disgruntled youths and accepted their demands in print, and literarily board a flight to Abuja, where he met with the President over the matter. The Lagos State Governor tendered the youths’ demands and appealed to the President to do the needful. Upon his return to Lagos, the Governor reported back to the youths and narrated his movement over the issue. When has a leader in Nigeria ever humbled himself before the youths in that manner?
The Lagos State Governor didn’t stop there but always address the protesters in person and through the mass media. He went as far as joining some of the protesters in carrying placard while waiting for the President to respond. It took the Federal Government several days of protest to attend to one of the youths’ demands. Since the President was far away from the protesting youths, the heat of the crisis was borne by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu in Lagos State. During these trying days, he was left all alone to his fate with the demonstrating youths.
When the first hazard of the protest occurred and a protester died, Governor Sanwo-Olu visited the bereaved parents and gave every support required. He spent time with the bereaved mother and consoled the family with appropriate compensation. Things got intense as the number of protesters rose defiantly in Lagos and many economic activities were being crippled. The Governor was at the centre of the crisis, facing the angry youths and enduring pressure from business owners and many stakeholders. Things grew to the climax when some unscrupulous mobs infiltrated the protesters and started unleashing mayhem on people. Some perverted politicos, who have been watching from behind the scene, orchestrated the deployment of military men with guns to the Lekki Toll gate and opened fire on the unarmed protesting youths. The blame for the casualties were put on Sanwo-Olu.
Governor Sanwo-Olu acted like the leader he is; in a sober mood, he accepted all the blames for things he didn’t do. The Federal government, which is in charge of the military, denied sending troops to open fire on the protesters. In a twinkle of an eye, Sanwo-Olu was painted an evil person. Everyone forgot the intervening roles he had been playing from the onset of the protest. All anger was vented on the Governor. Actions of the hands behind the scenes and the marauding mobsters were blamed on him. No one came to his aid neither did anyone empathized with the Governor while he faced the heat of the crisis. Sanwo-Olu’s mother’s house was allegedly torched by fire by angry youths, properties were burnt, looted and vandalized, and everyone still blame him for everything. The Lagos state governor did not sob but went on to visit all the affected properties and also visited the injured youths at various hospitals in the city and making remedies. Yet, people cared less if he was human or had emotions.
The President, whom the youths are calling his attention to the plight of Nigerians, seemed to live in a cocoon in the face of all the crisis. During the climax of the protest, when the youths were attacked by military, the President severed communication with Governor Sanwo-Olu and refused to see him nor speak to the Governor over the killings of the youths. With so much criticisms from international government and some Nigerians, the President reluctantly addressed Nigerians with empty and hollow speech. The president overlooked the killings of the youths and went back into his state of hibernation.
This President is the same man many Nigerians supported in 2015 with the hope that he would listen to the yearnings of Nigerians; five years later, he remain dormant, recalcitrant and aloof to the people who voted him into office. All the sweet election campaign promises during the 2015 election from the President turned out to be a sham.
Up till now, Nigerians could not boast of affordable public schools; the state of our roads are still terribly deplorable, the insecurity in the country took another scary turn and the president seems pleased as long as his Fulani tribesmen get what they want. It became clear now that President Muhammedu Buhari had a Fulani agenda when he returned in this civilian government. While the religious terrorists from his region are getting presidential treatment and dialoging and even negotiating with him, the President turned a deaf ear to the several millions of youths, who are demanding for good governance for Nigerians.
We are using this medium to appeal to the youths to stop the vandalisation of properties in Lagos; their real opposition is not the State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, but the nonchalant President and some evil northern bigots, who take pleasure in seeing southern people fight against themselves. The properties destroyed in Lagos will not be rebuilt by the Federal Government but by the State Government through the tax payers’ money in the State. Destroying public utilities in Lagos will only take us back. Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu may be crucified for everything, truth is, he is just being used as the sacrificial lamb. The people fighting for justice and progress must realise this and support the Governor while he is taking stock of the damages in Lagos.