A Calabar-based legal practitioner, Mr Fidelis Onyebueke, said on Wednesday in Calabar that the on-going #EndSARS protests could be resolved without bloodshed.
Onyebueke, who was reacting to the alleged shooting of protesters at the Lekki area of Lagos on Tuesday, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the protest, aimed at ending police brutality, began spontaneously, noting that the youths behind it had the right to assemble to protest against perceived wrongs in the society.
“My problem with the whole situation is that some people tend to take advantage of issues to commit crimes.
“The protest is lawful, but it seems to me that some hoodlums hijacked it to unleash mayhem, otherwise, why should protesters destroy hotels, police stations and other facilities.
“While it is true that security operatives over-reacted by using live bullets, no sensible government will allow properties to be destroyed by criminals who hijacked a legitimate protest.
“I condemn any form of shooting with live bullets because in the process, lives would be lost while there are other ways of resolving issues like this without it becoming bloody.
“I am not happy. Government should be able to differentiate between genuine protesters and hoodlums. It is very sad.
“The Federal Government must sit up to its responsibilities because the protest is not all about ending SARS, but about ending poverty, unemployment and insecurity in the nation.
“We must not deceive ourselves. Nigerians are not happy in a situation where a senator goes home with more than N30 million monthly, while the nation is impoverished. The Federal Government must sit up,’’ Onyebueke said. (NAN)