Voice of Emancipation: Like Kenya Like Nigeria

By Kayode Emola

Nigerian youths are famous for their protests when they need the attention of the government. They know the right buttons to press to make the government succumb to their demands and the ENDSARS protest of October 2020 did not disappoint. That is not to say many African youths don’t protest in their countries to make the government do the right thing when things go wrong.

We all witnessed the Arab Spring in early 2010 and how it toppled many African leaders from Egypt to Libya, Algeria, and Tunisia to say the least. These were youths dissatisfied with high unemployment in the land and the high burden of taxation.

This week, the youths of Kenya had enough, they have endured pain and frustration like their African counterparts and this time around, they are going to vent their anger. It is not going to be in a civil discourse, rather it will be on the streets of Nairobi. They know that African leaders when push comes to shove, know how to sheath their swords when matter gets out of hand.

President Ruto immediately understood the handwriting on the wall and withdrew from the controversial tax hike. Why did it take protest to force the government into action, the people have been burdened by high taxation already but the government doesn’t see this, rather than help to reduce the burden, they increase the pain and suffering by further impoverishing the people.

Like many of the other protests mentioned earlier, that eventually toppled the African leaders, we don’t know where this is going to end as the youths are not backing down yet. They are hellbent on seeing the Kenya President resign. Whether he resigns or not is a matter for another day. I want to focus on why African leaders wait for street protests before they listen to the pains of their people.

It took the youths of Nigeria several days on the street for the Nigerian government to agree to disband the notorious SARS Police. Even at that, the Nigerian government unleashed the army to a peaceful protest that saw so many innocent youths lose their life while fighting for their rights. No parents should have to worry about their child(ren) going into a protest and not returning at the end of the day. If truly Africa claims it is practicing democracy, then there should be room for dissenting voices.

I was saddened yesterday when I watched the burial of a 19-year-old boy Ibrahim Wanjiku who was shot twice by the Kenya police in the neck. This is totally an unnecessary killing by the police, as it stands, at least 20 Kenyan youths have been killed unnecessarily for peacefully protesting against a policy that will make them poorer. I believe this police officers should be held accountable for their actions

Like Kenya, the Nigerian government in 2020 killed many innocent youths through the army with the authorities covering their atrocities. This should not be as there should be accountability in every facet of our society. Those in charge of the country’s affairs should understand that they are holding the position as a trust on behalf of the people. They should use it diligently to serve the people with dignity and respect rather than using it to cause the death of innocent youths.

As we journey into Yoruba nationhood, we should hold our leaders accountable to ensure good governance so that no one in the society is left behind. It is only good governance that can ensure we do not resort to street protests before the government listens to the plight of the people.

We need a robust system that will cater to everyone in society, not the current corrupt system that only caters to the elite in society. Yoruba needs to come out of Nigeria to build that kind of system and the earlier we achieve our own independent Yoruba nation, the better it will be for the majority of our people who are caught up in this current system of failure.