Nigerian Outlook
Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders CACOL has condemned the arrest and molestation of 30 (thirty) unemployedg graduates by men of the Nigeria Police in Bayelsa State.
The graduates had staged a peaceful protest in Yenagoa, the capital city of Bayelsa against high rate of employment in the state and the state’s government neglect and insensitivity to their plight. They had given a 30-day ultimatum to Governor Seriake Dickson to lift the embargo on employment in the civil service in order to absorb more of the job-seeking graduates.
Speaking on behalf of the Coalition, its Executive Chairman, Debo Adeniran decried the level of insensitivity of the government at all levels in Nigeria to the plight of an average Nigerian.
“It is very disheartening that the government cares less about the plights of its citizens. What responsible government brutalizes its citizens for peacefully demanding what rightfully belongs to them? The action of the Bayelsa State government is unconscionable and highly condemnable. The high rate of impunity displayed by the federal government and some governors has called for a sober reflection from well-meaning Nigerians. Many of our leaders have insulted the sensibility of we, Nigerians with their stupendous display of wealth while the mass of the people are living below the poverty line,” he said.
Continuing, the statement recalled the recent fund-raising for the Nigerian president’s village church and reflected, “It is very saddening that over N5bn could be raised for President Goodluck Jonathan Country home church in just a service whereas many of the youths of the state are not gainfully employed. One could imagine how many jobs over N5bn could have created in Bayelsa State if the President had ordered his priority rightly.”
“Even if the state civil service could not absorb all of them, the N5bn could have created gainful employment opportunities if the President had decided to re-channel the ill-gotten funds for the Otuoke Church into creating job schemes to mop the teeming unemployed youths of Bayelsa State. It is however unfortunate that our leaders are not only clueless but morally bankrupt, incompetent and inept,” Adeniran disclosed.
The human rights activist however warned the government against fuelling the masses anger and called for the release of the protesters.
“It is high time our leaders realised that we are gradually getting to that point where citizens would demand their just right of economic empowerment, equity and justice in the sharing of the common patrimony, so that they could be on their toes to deal with more insurgencies, especially from the teeming unemployed youths all over the country. The government should realise that if they fail to engage these youths, they would become useful tools in the hands of mischief makers. We are also calling on the Bayelsa State government to release the arrested protesters to avert further crisis,” he warned.